γέννα

A derivation from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget”), though the exact morphological and phonological development is unclear.^[1]

γέννᾰ or γέννᾱ • (génnă or génnā) f (genitive γέννης or γέννᾱς); first declension (Poetic)

1. Ancient Greek
   1. synonym of γένος (génos)
      1. descent, lineage
      2. origin
         • 2nd century CE, w:Secundus the Silent, Sententiae. 15.

           γῆ γέννα πάντων

           gê génna pántōn

           the earth origin of everyone/everything

      3. offspring, generation
         • 525 BCE – 455 BCE, Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound 853:

           πέμπτη δ’ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ γέννα

           pémptē d’ ap’ autoû génna

           the fifth generation after him

      4. family (children), race
   2. coming forth (of the Moon)
2. Medieval (Byzantine) Greek: γέννα • (génna) f (genitive γέννας); first declension
   1. childbirth (process of childbearing)
   2. family
   3. “γέννα τῆς σελήνης (génna tês selḗnēs)”: moonrise (literally: the birth of the Moon) (of the Moon, expression)
   4. also see τὰ Γέννα • (tà Génna) n pl (genitive Γέννων); second declension (6th century CE): Christmas

      Synonym: τὰ Χριστούγεννα (tà Khristoúgenna)

• γενναῖος (gennaîos)
• γεννάω / γεννῶ
• γέννας (génnas)
• γεννήεις (gennḗeis)
• γεννικός (gennikós)

From Medieval Greek:

• Greek: γέννα (génna)
• → Amharic: ገና (gäna)
• → Tigre: ገና (gäna)

• τοκετός (toketós)

• “γέννᾰ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “γέννα”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “γέννα”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• γέννα in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2025)
• γέννα - Kriaras, Emmanuel (1969-) Επιτομή του Λεξικού της Μεσαιωνικής Ελληνικής Δημώδους Γραμματείας (Epitomí tou Lexikoú tis Mesaionikís Ellinikís Dimódous Grammateías) [Concise Dictionary of the Kriaras' Dictionary of Medieval Vulgar Greek Literature (1100–1669) Vols. 1–14. Vols 15- under I. Kazazes.)] (in Greek), Thessaloniki: Centre for the Greek language Online edition (abbreviations) Printed edition 2022: 22 vols.)
• γέννα, in ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ [Logeion] Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch and Chinese), University of Chicago, since 2011

• IPA^(key): /ˈʝe.na/
• Hyphenation: γέν‧να

From Byzantine Greek γέννα (génna) from verb γεννῶ. The Ancient Greek noun γέννα had a different meaning: “ancestry, descendant”).^[1]

γέννα • (génna) f (plural γέννες)

1. birth (process of childbearing)

• The very rare genitive plural “των γεννών”, is either archaic (“τῶν γεννῶν”), or regional demotic, or used for veterinary archives “αρχείο γεννών” (archeío gennón, “archive of births/labours”) while the common “αρχείο γεννήσεων” (archeío genníseon, “archive of births”) has to do with childbirths and registration.

Genitive plural των γεννών (see Usage notes).

• γέννηση f (génnisi)
• τοκετός m (toketós)

• γεννώ (gennó, “give birth or beget”)
• Χριστούγεννα (Christoúgenna, “Christmas”)

Inflectional form of the verb γεννάω (gennáo) / γεννώ (gennó, “to give birth”).

γέννα • (génna)

1. second-person singular imperfective imperative of γεννάω (gennáo) (also: γένναγε)
2. second-person singular perfective imperative of γεννάω (gennáo) (also: γέννησε)