Zeta 166763 222640839 2008-06-30T11:45:27Z VolkovBot 3035831 robot Adding: [[ext:Zeta]] {{wiktionarypar2|Ζ|ζ}} {{Table_Greekletters|letter=zeta}} {{otheruses}} {{seealso|Principality of Zeta}} '''Zeta''' (uppercase '''Ζ''', lowercase '''ζ'''; {{lang-el|Ζήτα}} {{IPA|[ziːta]}} Zita) is the sixth letter of the [[Greek alphabet]]. In the system of [[Greek numerals]] it has a value of 7. It was derived from the [[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician letter]] [[Zayin (letter)|Zayin]] [[Image:phoenician zayin.png|20px|Zayin]]. Letters that arose from Zeta include the Roman [[Z]] and Cyrillic [[Ze (Cyrillic)|З (Ze)]]. Unlike the other [[Greek alphabet|Greek letters]], this letter did not take its name from the [[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]] letter it was derived from; it was given a new name on the pattern of [[beta]], [[eta]] and [[theta]]. Zeta has the numerical value 7 rather than 6 because the letter [[digamma]] (also called '[[stigma (letter)|stigma]]' as a [[Greek numeral]]) was originally in the sixth position in the alphabet. Zeta can be said to be the origin of the most common pronunciation of the Roman letter [[Z]]. ==Symbol== The lower case letter can be used to represent: *The [[damping ratio]] of a spring-system in engineering and physics *The effective nuclear charge on an electron in quantum chemistry *The [[Riemann zeta function]] in [[mathematics]] *The lag angle in helicopter blade dynamics *[[Zoophilia]] ==Pronunciation== The letter ζ represents a [[voiced alveolar fricative]] ({{IPA2|z}}) in [[modern Greek]]. The sound represented by zeta in [[Classical Greek]] is disputed. See [[Ancient Greek phonology]] and [[Pronunciation of Ancient Greek in teaching]]. Most handbooks agree on attributing to it the pronunciation {{IPA|[zd]}} (like ''Mazda''), but some scholars believe that it was an affricate {{IPA|[dz]}} (like [[Italian language|Italian]] ''mezzo''). The modern pronunciation was, in all likelihood, established in the Hellenistic age and was probably a common, if not exclusive, practice already in Classical [[Attic dialect|Attic]], considering that it could count as one or two consonants metrically in the Attic drama. The arguments in favour of {{IPA|[zd]}}: # IE *''zd'' becomes ζ in Greek (e.g. *''sísdō'' > {{Polytonic|ἵζω}}). '''Contra:''' these words are rare and it is therefore more probable that *''zd'' was absorbed by *''dz'' (< *''dj'', *''gj'', *''j''). # Without {{IPA|[sd]}} there would be an empty space between {{IPA|[sb]}} and {{IPA|[sg]}} in the Greek sound system ({{Polytonic| πρεσβύς, σβέννυμι, φάσγανον }}), and a voiced affricate {{IPA|[dz]}} would not have a voiceless correspondent. '''Contra:''' a) words with {{IPA|[sb]}} and {{IPA|[sg]}} are rare; b) there was {{IPA|[sd]}} in {{Polytonic|ὅσδε, εἰσδέχται}} etc.; and c) there was in fact a voiceless correspondent in Archaic Greek ({{IPA|[ts]}} > Attic, [[Boeotian Greek|Boeotian]] {{Polytonic|ττ}}, [[Ionic Greek|Ionic]], [[Doric Greek|Doric]] {{Polytonic|σσ}}). # [[Old Persian|Persian]] names with ''zd'' and ''z'' are transcribed with ζ and σ respectively in Classical Greek (e.g. ''Artavazda'' = {{Polytonic|Ἀρτάβαζος / Ἀρτάοζος}} ~ ''Zara(n)ka-'' = {{Polytonic|Σαράγγαι}}. Similarly, the [[Philistine]] city [[Ashdod]] was transcribed as {{polytonic|Αζωτος}}. # ν disappears before ζ like before σ(σ), στ: e.g. *{{Polytonic|πλάνζω}} > {{Polytonic|πλᾰ́ζω}}, *{{Polytonic|σύνζυγος}} = *{{Polytonic|συνστέλλω}} > {{Polytonic|σῠστέλλω}}. '''Contra:''' ν may have disappeared before /dz/ if one accepts that it had the allophone {{IPA|[z]}} in that position like /ts/ had the allophone {{IPA|[s]}}: cf. [[Cretan Greek|Cretan]] {{Polytonic|ἴαττα}} ~ {{Polytonic|ἀποδίδονσα}} (Hinge). # Verbs beginning with ζ have {{Polytonic|ἐ-}} in the perfect reduplication like the verbs beginning with στ (e.g. {{Polytonic|ἔζηκα}} = {{Polytonic|ἔσταλται}}). '''Contra:''' a) The most prominent example of a verb beginning with στ has in fact {{Polytonic|ἑ-}} < *''se-'' in the perfect reduplication ({{Polytonic|ἕστηκα}}; b) the words with /ts/ > σ(σ) also have {{Polytonic|ἐ-}}: [[Homer]] {{Polytonic|ἔσσυμαι, -ται}}, Ion. {{Polytonic|ἐσσημένῳ}}. # [[Alcman]], [[Sappho]], [[Alcaeus]] and [[Theocritus]] have σδ for [[Attic-Ionic]] ζ. '''Contra:''' The tradition would not have invented this special digraph for these poets if {{IPA|[zd]}} was the normal pronunciation in all Greek. Furthermore, this convention is not found in contemporary inscriptions, and the orthography of the manuscripts and papyri is [[Alexandria|Alexandrine]] rather than historical. Thus, ({{Polytonic|σδ}} indicates only a different pronunciation from Hellenistic Greek {{IPA|[z(ː)]}}, i.e. either {{IPA|[zd]}} or {{IPA|[ʣ]}}. # The grammarians [[Dionysius Thrax]] and [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] class ζ with the "double" ({{Polytonic|διπλᾶ}}) letters ψ, ξ and analyse it as σ + δ. '''Contra:''' The Roman grammarian [[Verrius Flaccus]] believed in the opposite sequence, δ + σ (in [[Velius Longus]], ''De orthogr''. 51), and [[Aristotle]] says that it was a matter of dispute (''Metaph''. 993a) (though Aristotle might as well be referring to a {{IPA|[zː]}} pronunciation). # Some Attic transcriptions of Asia Minor toponyms (βυζζαντειον, αζζειον, etc) show a -ζζ- for ζ; assuming that [[Attic Greek|Attic]] value was {{IPA|[zd]}}, it may be an attempt to transcribe a dialectal {{IPA|[dz]}} pronunciation; the reverse cannot be ruled completely, but a -σδ- transcription would have been more likely in this case. This suggest that different dialects had different pronunciations. # Some [[Attic Greek|Attic]] inscriptions have -σζ- for -σδ- or -ζ-, which is thought to parallel -σστ- for -στ- and therefore to imply a {{IPA|[zd]}} pronunciation. Arguments in favour of [dz] are: # The Greek inscriptions almost never write ζ in words like {{Polytonic|ὅσδε, τούσδε}} or {{Polytonic|εἰσδέχται}}, so there must have been a difference between this sound and the sound of {{Polytonic|ἵζω, Ἀθήναζε}}. '''Contra:''' a few inscriptions do seem to suggest that ζ was pronounced like σδ (though it may indeed be a minoritary pronunciation). # It seems improbable that Greek would invent a special symbol for the bisegmental combination {{IPA|[zd]}}, which could be represented by σδ without any problems. {{IPA|/ds/}}, on the other hand, would have the same sequence of plosive and sibilant as the double letters of the Ionic alphabet ψ {{IPA|/ps/}} and ξ {{IPA|/ks/}}, thereby avoiding a written plosive at the end of a syllable. '''Contra:''' the use of a special symbol for {{IPA|[zd]}} is no more or no less improbable that the use of ψ for {{IPA|[ps]}} and ξ for {{IPA|[ks]}}, and such use of special letters may be justified by the fact that they are the only double sounds that could appear at a word initial. # [[Boeotia]]n, [[Elis|Elean]], [[Laconia]]n and [[Creta]]n ''δδ'' are more easily explained as a direct development from *''dz'' than through an intermediary *''zd''. '''Contra:''' a) the sound development ''dz'' > ''dd'' is improbable (Mendez Dosuna); b) ν has disappeared before ζ > δδ in Laconian {{Polytonic|πλαδδιῆν}} (Aristoph., ''Lys''. 171, 990) and Boeotian {{Polytonic|σαλπίδδω}} (Sch. Lond. in Dion. Thrax 493), which suggests that these dialects have had a phase of metathesis (Teodorsson). # Greek in South Italy has preserved {{IPA|[dz]}} until modern times. '''Contra:''' a) this may be a later development from {{IPA|[zd]}} or {{IPA|[z]}}; b) even if it is derived from an ancient {{IPA|[dz]}}, it may be a dialectal pronunciation. # [[Vulgar Latin]] inscriptions use the Greek letter Z for indigenous affricates (e.g. ''zeta'' = ''diaeta''), and the Greek ζ is continued by a Romance affricate in the ending {{Polytonic|-ίζω}} > Italian. ''-eggiare'', French ''-oyer''. '''Contra:''' whether the prononciation of {{Polytonic|ζ}} was {{IPA|[dz]}}, {{IPA|[zd]}} or {{IPA|[zː]}}, ''di'' would probably still have been the closest native Latin sound. In summary: * {{Polytonic|σδ}} is attested only in [[Lesbos Island|Lesbian]] and [[Sparta]]n [[lyric poetry]] from the [[Archaic period in Greece|Archaic age]] and in [[Bucolic]] poetry from the [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenistic Age]]. Most scholars would take this as an indication that the {{IPA|[zd]}}-pronunciation existed in the dialects of these authors. * The transcriptions from [[Old Persian|Persian]] by [[Xenophon]] and testimony by grammarians support the pronunciation {{IPA|[zd]}} in [[Classical Greece|Classical]] [[Attic Greek|Attic]]. On the other hand. The fact that {{Polytonic|ζ}} (e.g. {{Polytonic|ὄζω}}) and {{Polytonic|σδ}} (e.g. {{Polytonic|ὅσδε}}) are distinguished in all [[Classical Greece|Classical]] inscriptions and literary texts indicates a different pronunciation. * {{IPA|[z(ː)]}} is attested from c. 350 BC in [[Attic Greek|Attic]] inscriptions, and was the probable value in [[Koine Greek|Koine]]. * {{IPA|[dʒ]}} or {{IPA|[dz]}} may have existed in some other dialects in parallel. ==References== *Allen, William Sidney: ''Vox Graeca: A guide to the pronunciation of Classical Greek''. Cambridge University Press 1987, pp. 56-59. *Hinge, George: "Die Aussprache des griechischen Zeta", in: ''Die Sprache Alkmans: Textgeschichte und Sprachgeschichte'' (PhD dissertation), Aarhus 2001, pp. 212-234 = [http://alkman.georgehinge.com/zeta.html] *Méndez Dosuna, Julián: "On <Ζ> for <Δ> in Greek dialectal inscriptions", ''Die Sprache'' 35, 1993, pp. 82-114. *Rohlfs, Gerhard: "Die Aussprache des z (ζ) im Altgriechischen", ''Glotta'' 8, 1962, pp. 3-8. *Teodorsson, Sven-Tage: "The pronunciation of zeta in different Greek dialects". In: E. Crespo i.a. (ed.): ''Dialectologia Graeca: Actas del II Coloquio Internacional de Dialectología Griega''. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid 1993, pp. 305-321. [[Category:Greek letters]] [[als:Ζ]] [[ar:زيتا (حرف إغريقي)]] [[arc:Ζ]] [[ast:Dseta]] [[br:Zeta (lizherenn)]] [[bg:Зета]] [[ca:Dseta]] [[cy:Zeta (llythyren)]] [[da:Zeta (bogstav)]] [[de:Zeta]] [[el:Ζήτα]] [[es:Ζ]] [[eo:Zeto]] [[ext:Zeta]] [[eu:Zeta (greko)]] [[fr:Zêta]] [[ga:Zéite]] [[gd:Zeta]] [[gl:Dseta]] [[ko:Ζ]] [[id:Zeta]] [[is:Zeta]] [[it:Zeta (lettera)]] [[he:זטא]] [[ht:Ζ]] [[ku:Zeta]] [[la:Zeta]] [[hu:Dzéta]] [[nl:Zèta]] [[ja:Ζ]] [[no:Zeta]] [[nn:Zeta]] [[nds:Zeta]] [[pl:Dzeta]] [[pt:Ζ]] [[ru:Дзета (буква)]] [[simple:Zeta]] [[sk:Zéta]] [[sl:Zeta (črka)]] [[fi:Zeeta]] [[sv:Zeta]] [[th:ซีตา]] [[tr:Ζ]] [[uk:Дзета (літера)]] [[zh:Ζ]]