Politics & SocietyGreek → English
Navarch
/ˈneɪvɑːrk/noun
The commander of a Greek fleet, especially the annual Spartan naval office.
The Greek roots
ναῦς
naûs
ship
ἄρχος
arkhós
commander, leader
Literally: “ship commander”
The story of the word
Sparta elected a navarch for one year and barred a second term, which worked until Lysander won the war at sea and the allies demanded him back. The Spartans sent him out again as nominal second in command to a figurehead, keeping the rule and gutting it in the same motion. ναῦς has a Latin cousin in navis, behind naval and navigate, and gives English nausea directly: ναυσία is literally ship-sickness.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
Same family
nauticalnauseaargonautmonarch
In a sentence
The navarch drew up his line with the shore at his back.
Xenophon lists the navarchs year by year and rarely praises one.