Μελίτη

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Apparently from μέλι (méli, “honey”) +‎ -η (-ē, “-a: forming feminine place names”), although its use for the island of Malta is considered uncertain. Some scholars consider it to represent the importance of the islands' indigenous bees and their output. Others consider it a transcription of Phoenician 𐤌𐤋𐤈 (mlṭ, “Grand Harbor, Cospicua”), from 𐤌𐤋𐤈 (mlṭ, “refuge, port”), reapplied first to the island and then, after its Roman conquest, to its capital via Latin Melita. See Wikipedia's articles on Melite and Malta.

Pronunciation
 

Proper noun

Μελῐ́τη • (Melítē) f (genitive Μελῐ́της); first declension

  1. Malta (an island in the Mediterranean Sea, Malta)
  2. Mdina (a city on the island of Malta, Malta)
  3. Mljet (an island in the Adriatic Sea, Croatia)

Declension
First declension of ἡ Μελῐ́τη; τῆς Μελῐ́της (Attic)
Case / # Singular
Nominative ἡ Μελῐ́τη
hē Melítē
Genitive τῆς Μελῐ́της
tês Melítēs
Dative τῇ Μελῐ́τῃ
têi Melítēi
Accusative τὴν Μελῐ́την
tḕn Melítēn
Vocative Μελῐ́τη
Melítē
Notes:
  • This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms
  • Μελῐταῖον n (Melitaîon, noun)
  • Μελῐτεύς (Meliteús, adjective)
  • Μελῐτήϊος (Melitḗïos, adjective)

Descendants
  • → Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܝܼܠܹܛܵܐ (mīleṭa)
  • → French: Mélitè
  • → Latin: Melite
  • Latin: Melita, Melitē, Malta

Further reading
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