Etymology
Several hypotheses have been advanced to explain the origin of the name Sarmizegetusa. The most important are the following:
- ‘The citadel built of the palisades on mountain peak’ from ZERMI (*gher-mi, mountain peak, top cf. *gher ‘stone’, ‘high’) and ZEGE-T (*geg(h)t)
- ‘City of warm river’ from ZARMI ‘warm’ (derived from Sanskrit gharma ‘warm’) and ZEGET ‘flow’ (derived from Sanskrit sarj, bactrien harez; sarjana, harezâna ‘flow’), the city being named after the nearby river Sargetia
- ‘The palace that illuminates the world of life’ from "ZARMYA" ‘palace’ (Sanskrit harmya ‘palace’), ZEGETH ‘world of life’ (Sanskrit jagat, jigat ‘go’, ‘mobility / world of life’) and "USA" ‘illuminaing’ (‘enlightening’, ‘burning’)
Read more about this topic: Sarmizegetusa Regia
Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
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“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
—Giambattista Vico (1688–1744)