__I in a form of sun-dial, the shadow of the gnomon, the length of which in feet indicated the time of day, ὅταν ᾖ δεκάπουν τὸ σ. when the shadow is ten feet long, [[ 5th-6th c.BC: Aristophanes Comicus “Ecclesiazusae” 652 ] Refs 5th c.BC+], see [[ Scholia; ὁπηνίκ᾽ ἂν εἴκοσι ποδῶν.. τὸ σ. ᾖ 4th c.BC: Eubulus Comicus 119.7, compare 4th-3rd c.BC: Philemo Comicus 83. ] Refs 4th c.BC+]
__II element,
__II.1 a simple sound of speech, as the first component of the syllable, [[ 5th-6th c.BC: Plato Philosophus “Cratylus” 424d ] Refs 5th c.BC+]; τὸ ῥῶ τὸ σ[[. [prev. work] 426d; γραμμάτων σ. καὶ συλλαβάς [prev. author] “Tht.” 202e; σ. ἐστι φωνὴ ἀδιαίρετος 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “Poetica” 1456b22; φωνῆς σ. καὶ ἀρχαὶ δοκοῦσιν εἶναι ταῦτ᾽ ἐξ ὧν σύγκεινται αἱ φωναὶ πρώτων [prev. author] “Metaphorical” 998a23, compare 2nd c.AD: Galenus Medicus 15.6:] Refs 4th c.BC+] —στοιχεῖα therefore, strictly, were different from letters (γράμματα), [[ 2nd c.BC: Diogenes Babylonius Stoicus 3.213, Scholia 2nd c.BC: Dionysius Thrax Grammaticus p.32, +others] Refs 2nd c.BC+], but are frequently not clearly distinguished from them, as by [[ 5th-6th c.BC: Plato Philosophus “Tht.” [same place], “Cra.” 426d; τὰ σ. τῶν γραμμάτων τὰ τέτταρα καὶ εἴκοσι 4th c.BC: Aeneas Tacticus 31.21 ] Refs 5th c.BC+]; σ. ε ¯ letter ε (in a filing-system), [[ “BGU” 959.2 (2nd c.AD)] Refs 2nd c.AD+]; ἀκουόμενα σ. letters which are pronounced, [[ 2nd c.AD: Apollonius Dyscolus Grammaticus “de Adverbiis;” 165.17 ] Refs 2nd c.AD+]; γράμματα and ς. are expressly identified by [[ 2nd c.BC: Dionysius Thrax Grammaticus 630.32 ] Refs 2nd c.BC+]; the ς. and its name are confused by [[ 2nd c.AD: Apollonius Dyscolus Grammaticus “de Syntaxi;” 29.1, but distinguished by Hdn.Gr. cited in 4th-5th c.AD: Choeroboscus Grammaticus “Scholia in Theodosii Canones” 1.340, Scholia 2nd c.BC: Dionysius Thrax Grammaticus [same place]:] Refs 2nd c.BC+] — κατὰ στοιχεῖον in the order of the letters, alphabetically, [[ Anthologia Graeca 11.15 (2nd c.AD: Ammianus Epigrammaticus); uncertain meaning in 1st-2nd c.AD: Plutarchus Biographus et Philosophus 2.422e. ] Refs 1st c.AD+]
__II.2 in Physics, στοιχεῖα were the components into which matter is ultimately divisible, elements, reduced to four by Empedocles, who called them ῥιζὤματα, the word στοιχεῖα being first used (accusative to [[ 4th c.BC: Eudemus Philosophus cited in 6th c.AD: Simplicius Philosophus “in Aristotelis Physica commentaria - Comm. in Arist. Graeca” 7.13) by 5th-6th c.BC: Plato Philosophus ] Refs 5th c.BC+], τὰ πρῶτα οἱονπερεὶ σ, ἐξ ὧν ἡμεῖς τε συγκείμεθα καὶ τἄλλα [[ “Tht.” 201e ] Refs]; τὰ τῶν πάντων σ. [[ “Plt.” 278d; αὐτὰ τιθέμενοι σ. τοῦ παντός “Ti.” 48b, compare 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “de Generatione et Corruptione” 314a29, “Metaphorical” 998a28, 4th-3rd c.BC: Theophrastus Philosophus “de Sensu” 3, +others, 3rd c.AD(?): Diogenes Laertius 3.24; σ. σωματικά 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “Meteorologica” 338a22, 4th-3rd c.BC: Theophrastus Philosophus “Fragmenta” 46 ] Refs 4th c.BC+]; ἄτομα σ. [[ 4th-3rd c.BC: Epicurus Philosophus “Epistulae” 2p.36U. ] Refs 4th c.BC+]; equivalent to ἀρχαί, Thales cited in [[ 1st-2nd c.AD: Plutarchus Biographus et Philosophus 2.875c, 6th c.BC: Anaximander Philosophus cited in 3rd c.AD(?): Diogenes Laertius 2.1, Anonymus cited in 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “Physica” 188b28, “Metaphorical” 1059b23, +others; but 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus ] Refs 6th c.BC+] also distinguishes ς. from ἀρχή as less comprehensive, [[[prev. work]1070b23] Refs]; τὰ σ. ὕλη τῆς οὐσίας [[[prev. work]1088b27] Refs]; τρία τὰ σ. [[ [prev. author] “Ph.” 189b16 ] Refs]; distinguished from ἀρχή on other grounds by [[ “Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta” 2.111] Refs]; ς. used in three senses by Chrysipp., [[[prev. work]136, cf. Zeno [prev. work]1.24, +others] Refs]; in Medicine, [[ 2nd c.AD: Galenus Medicus 6.3, 420, +others, 15.7, +others; Αἰθέρ, κόσμου σ. ἄριστον 5th-6th c.AD: Orphica “Hymni” 5.4 ] Refs 2nd c.AD+]; ἀνηλεὲς σ., of the sea, [[ 2nd c.AD: Babrius Fabularum Scriptor 71.4 ] Refs 2nd c.AD+]; τὸ σ., of the sea, [[ 1st-2nd c.AD: Polemo Sophista “Cynegirus” 44 ] Refs 1st c.AD+]; ἄμφω τὰ σ., i.e. land and sea,[[ [prev. work] 11, compare 2nd c.AD: Herodianus Grammaticus 3.1.5, 4th c.AD: Himerius Sophista “Eclogae” 2.18. ] Refs 2nd c.AD+]
__II.3 the elements of proof, e.g. in general reasoning the πρῶτοι συλλογισμοί, [[ 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “Metaphysica” 1014b1 ] Refs 4th c.BC+]; in Geometry, the propositions whose proof is involved in the proof of other propositions,[[[prev. work] 998a26, 1014a36 ] Refs]; title of geometrical works by Hippocrates of Chios, Leon, Theudios, and Euclid, [[ 5th c.AD: Proclus Philosophus “in primum Euclidis librum commentarius” pp.66,67, 68F. ] Refs 5th c.AD+]: hence applied to whatever is one, small, and capable of many uses, [[ 4th c.BC: Aristoteles Philosophus “Metaphysica” 1014b3 ] Refs 4th c.BC+]; to whatever is most universal, e.g. the unit and the point,[[[prev. work] 6 ] Refs]; the line and the circle, [[ [prev. author] “Top.” 158b35; the τόπος (argument applicable to a variety of subjects), [prev. work] 120b13, +others, “Rh.” 1358a35, +others; στοιχεῖα τὰ γένη λέγουσί τινες [prev. author] “Metaphorical” 1014b10 ] Refs]; τὸ νόμισμα σ. καὶ πέρας τῆς ἀλλαγῆς coin is the unit.. of exchange, [[ [prev. author] “Pol.” 1257b23 ] Refs]; in Grammar, σ. τῆς λέξεως parts of speech, [[ 1st c.BC: Dionysius Halicarnassensis “de Compositione Verborum” 2 ] Refs 1st c.BC+]; but also, the letters composing a word, [[ 2nd c.AD: Apollonius Dyscolus Grammaticus “de Syntaxi;” 313.7 ] Refs 2nd c.AD+]; letters of the alphabet, [[ 4th c.BC: Diogenes Cynicus Philosophus Bab. “Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta” 3.213] Refs 4th c.BC+]; σ. τοῦ λόγου the elements of speech, i.e. words, or the kinds of words, parts of speech, [[ 4th-3rd c.BC: Theophrastus Philosophus cited in 6th c.AD: Simplicius Philosophus “in Aristotelis Categorias commentarium - Comm. in Arist. Graeca” 10.24, 3rd c.BC: Chrysippus Stoicus 2.45, 2nd c.AD: Apollonius Dyscolus Grammaticus “de Syntaxi;” 7.1, 313.6. ] Refs 4th c.BC+]
