peristylium

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin peristylium.

Noun

peristylium (plural peristyliums or peristylia)

(chiefly in ancient Roman contexts) A peristyle.
Synonym: peristylum
- 1875, Ernst Guhl, W[ilhelm] Koner, translated by F. Hueffer, The Life of the Greeks and Romans, Described From Antique Monuments, London: Chapman and Hall, page 362:
  A similar design we find in the peristylium of the Casa della Caccia, or di Dedalo e Pasifae, but for its being still more irregular, owing to the want of a rectangular termination; the atrium of this house also is spacious, and perfectly regular.
- 1886, S. Russell Forbes, Rambles in Naples: An Archaeological and Historical Guide to the Museums, Galleries, Villas, Churches, and Antiquities of Naples and Its Environs, 3rd edition, London: T. Nelson and Sons, page 62:
  This house, like many others at the time of the destruction of the city, was undergoing repairs—one of the sides of the peristylium being left unfrescoed, the other being finished.
- 1941, Henryk Sienkiewicz, translated by Monica M[ary] Gardner, Quo Vadis?, London, New York, N.Y.: Dent; Dutton, page 430:
  Yet still the peristylia of lordly mansions were decked with flowers and wreathed with ivy, for it was forbidden to manifest any signs of grief.
- 1964, LeGette Blythe, Man on Fire, New York, N.Y.: Funk & Wagnalls Company, page 343:
  "If she should discover that I had enlisted with slaves and shopkeepers in the Galilean's fellowship"—Claudia shrugged, left unfinished her observation. She crossed the mosaic of the terrace's paving and entered the peristylium.
- 2016, Alan Smale, Eagle in Exile (The Clash of Eagles; 2), London: Titan Books, →ISBN, page 435:
  Escorted back to the Praetorium building two hours later wearing a simple Roman tunic, Marcellinus was ushered into a peristylium area, a small courtyard open to the sky surrounded by a portico of rough wooden columns.

References

“peristylium, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

Latin

Etymology

From Ancient Greek περιστῡ́λιον (peristū́lion).

Pronunciation

(Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /pe.risˈtyː.li.um/, [pɛrɪs̠ˈt̪yːlʲiʊ̃ˑ]
(modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /pe.risˈti.li.um/, [perisˈt̪iːlium]

Noun

peristȳlium n (genitive peristȳliī or peristȳlī); second declension

a peristyle, an open interior space surrounded by columns.

Declension

Second-declension noun (neuter).

	singular	plural
nominative	peristȳlium	peristȳlia
genitive	peristȳliī peristȳlī¹	peristȳliōrum
dative	peristȳliō	peristȳliīs
accusative	peristȳlium	peristȳlia
ablative	peristȳliō	peristȳliīs
vocative	peristȳlium	peristȳlia

¹Found in older Latin (until the Augustan Age).

Related terms

peristȳlum

Descendants

English: peristyle
Italian: peristilio

References

“peristylium”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
peristylium in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
“peristylium”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin