Link Centre Dictionary

Minoan

mi·noan

UK/mɪˈnəʊən/ US/mʌˈnoʊʌn/ uncommon
adjective (1) noun (1)

adjective

1.

of or relating to or characteristic of the Bronze Age culture of Crete

  • “the Minoan palace at Knossos”

noun

1.

a Cretan who lived in the bronze-age culture of Crete about 3000-1100 BC

Origin

Sir Arthur Evans, not knowing the Minoan term for “Minoan” at the time, coined this name in the early 20th century, from Ancient Greek Μίνως (Mínōs), the mythical king of Crete. The actual name is probably reflected in Egyptian kftjw (perhaps reconstructible as *Káftayu) and Biblical Hebrew כַּפְתּוֹר (Kaftor, “Caphthor”).

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Pertaining to

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.