abderitt

From German Abderit (“Abderite”), from Latin Abderita, Abderites, from Ancient Greek Ἀβδηρίτης (Abdērítēs), from Ἄβδηρα (Ábdēra, “Abdera”), from a Phoenician word + -ῑ́της (-ī́tēs, “demonymic suffix”), a back-formation of πολῑ́της (polī́tēs), from both πόλις (pólis, “city, community”), from Proto-Hellenic *ptólis (“city”), from Proto-Indo-European *tpólHis, from *tpelH- (“fortification, city”) + and from -της (-tēs, forms demonyms), from Proto-Hellenic *-tās, probably from Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ and *-tós (forms verbal adjectives).

• IPA^(key): /abdəˈrɪt/

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• Rhymes: -ɪt
• Hyphenation: ab‧de‧ritt

abderitt m (definite singular abderitten, indefinite plural abderitter, definite plural abderittene)

1. (historical) an Abderite (an inhabitant or native of Abdera, in Thrace, a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe, now divided between Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey)
   • 1890, Marcus Jacob Monrad, Æsthetik II, page 483:

     den classiske oldtid havde f.ex. sine abderiter, vi have vore fjeldmænd, jyder o.s.v.

     the classical antiquity had e.g. its abderites, we have our mountaineers, Jews, etc.

   • 1896, Henrik Jæger, Illustreret norsk literaturhistorie I, page 497:

     Wieland’s bekjendte fortælling om de græske «molboer», abderitterne

     Wieland’s well-known tale of the Greek “molboer”, the abderites

2. (colloquial, derogatory) a simple-minded person

   Synonym: molbo

An ancient belief was that "the people of Abdera are fools and madmen" (stulti et insani Abderitae).

• abderittisk (“abderian”)

• “abderitt” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
• “abderitt” in Store norske leksikon