Polis - Derived Words

Derived Words

Derivatives of polis are common in many modern European languages. This is indicative of the influence of the polis-centred Hellenic world view. Derivative words in English include policy, polity, police and politics. In Greek, words deriving from polis include politēs and politismos, whose exact equivalents in Latin, Romance and other European languages, respectively civis (citizen), civilisatio (civilization) etc. are similarly derived.

A number of words end in the word "-polis". Most refer to a special kind of city and/or state. Some examples are:

• Astropolis — star-scaled city/industry area; complex space station; a European star-related festival.
• Cosmopolis — a large urban centre with a population of many different cultural backgrounds; a novel written by Don DeLillo.
• Ecumenopolis — a city that covers an entire planet, usually seen in science fiction
• Megalopolis, built by merging several cities and their suburbs.
• Metropolis can refer to the mother city of a colony, the see of a metropolitan archbishop or a Metropolitan area — a major urban population centre.
• Necropolis 'city of the dead' — a graveyard.
• Technopolis — city with high-tech industry; room full of computers; the Internet.

Other refer to part of a city or a group of cities, such as:

• Acropolis, 'high city' — upper part of a polis, often citadel and/or site of major temple(s).
• Decapolis, a group of ten cities
• Dodecapolis, a group of twelve cities
• Pentapolis, a group of five cities
• Tripolis, a group of three cities, retained in the names of a Tripoli in Libya, in Greece and a namesake in Lebanon