syria
/ˈsɪɹi.ə/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.40 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
name
A country in West Asia in the Middle East. Official name: Syrian Arab Republic. Capital: Damascus.
name
A historical region of West Asia, extending from modern-day southeast Turkey to the north, the Euphrates and Arabian Desert to the east, the Sinai Peninsula to the south, and the Mediterranean sea to the west.
name
An ancient Roman province between 64 BCE and 198 CE.
Example Sentences
- "Representatives of the Syrian National Council and the National Coordination Body for Democratic Change in Syria signed an agreement late Friday in Cairo for a transition in a post-Assad era, the NCB said on its Facebook page."
- "The belt which runs along the eastern frontier from north to south, traversing all Syria from the extreme limits of the Taurus to the Sinai desert, is not remarkable for any marked grandeur in its physical features, and is tolerably uniform in its characteristics, being made up to a considerable extent of a broad plateau of steppe land, rock and sand and debris being freely intermingled in its formation, and forming an immeasurable succession of high plains, whose effect is manifest in the course of the Euphrates, which has been driven to the eastward thereby, and removed from the immediate neighbourhood of the Mediterranean Sea."
Etymology
From Middle English Sirie, from Latin Sȳria, from Ancient Greek Σῠρῐ́ᾱ (Sŭrĭ́ā), apheretic form of Ἀσσυρία (Assuría, “Assyria”), from Akkadian 𒀾𒋗𒊏𒅀 (Aššūrāyu), from 𒀸𒋩 (Aššur, “Assur”). The land corresponding to modern Syria was originally called Aram by its ancient inhabitants, the Arameans. After the Assyrian conquest of Aram, the Greeks applied the name Syria to this territory. Over time, Syria came to denote the broader Levant, while Assyria referred to Mesopotamia. Herodotus (5th century BCE) was among the earliest Greek authors to consistently distinguish Syria and Assyria. After his time, some classical writers occasionally blurred the distinction. Nevertheless, educated writers and administrative usage gradually preserved the distinction, with Syria referring to the Levant and Assyria to Mesopotamia.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: Sirie, Sȳria, Σῠρῐ́ᾱ, Aššūrāyu
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈsɪɹi.ə/
- British English: /ˈsɪɹi.ə/
Derived Forms
Phrases
Greater Syria
Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
Syria-Palestine
Syro-
Coele Syria
Syria Damascena
Syria Palaestina