Bible Lexicons

χώρα,

Ion. χώρη, ἡ, = χῶρος,

space or room in which a thing is, defined as partly occupied space, distd. fr. κενόν and τόπος, Zeno Stoic. 1.26 (cf.2.163), S.E. P. 3.124; ποταγορεύοντι τὰν ὕλαν τόπον καὶ χώραν Ti.Locr. 94b (in ὁ τόπος τῆς χ. Pl. Lg. 705c χώρα = country (cf. 11.1); so χώρας ἐν τόποις Λιβυστικοῖς A. Eu. 292); οὐδέ τι πολλὴ χώρη μεσσηγύς Il. 23.521; νόμισμα.. χώρας μεγάλης δέοιτ' ἄν X. Lac. 7.5; χώραν τινὶ καταλιπεῖν leave room for it, Plu. 2.123f, etc.

2. generally, place, spot, στρέψεσθ' ἐκ χώρης ὅθι.. Il. 6.516, cf. Od. 16.352; ὀλίγῃ ἐνὶ χ. Il. 17.394; χώραν ἐκ χώρας μεταβάλλειν move from place to place, Pl. Tht. 181c; field in a ceiling, IG 42(1).103.193, 106ii139 (Epid., iv B. C.); ἡ πρώτη χ. the first field (on the chest of Cypselus), Paus. 5.17.6; socket or cavity of a joint, Hp. Art. 79, 80; of the eye, IG 42(1).121.76 (Epid., iv B. C.); as euphemism for the genital organs, Hippiatr. 33, 71.

3. the position, proper place of a person or thing, ἐνὶ χώρῃ ἕζεται Il. 23.349: esp. a soldier's post, Ἄρης οὐκ ἔνι χώρα is not at his post (or perh. in the land, cf. Ar. Lys. 524) A. Ag. 78 (anap.); χώραν λιπεῖν, προλείπειν, Th. 4.126, 2.87; μισθοφορεῖν κεναῖς χ. draw pay for unfilled vacancies, Aeschin. 3.146; ἐπιγράψαι αὐτῷ τὴν χ. UPZ 14.88 (ii B. C.): later τὴν χ. τινὸς ἀποπληρῶσαι, ποιῆσαι, fill a person's place, POxy. 136.15 (vi A. D.), PMasp. 32.11 (vi A. D.): χώραν λαβεῖν take a position, find one's place, ἕως ἂν χώραν λάβῃ [τὰ πράγματα ] till they are brought into position, into order, X. Cyr. 4.5.37; οὐ διδοὺς ἑτέρῳ τόπον οὐδὲ χώραν διακονίας Plu. 2.62d; οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι χώραν νοήσεως ἡντινοῦν τὸ ἀγαθόν the Good cannot have any possibility of thinking, Plot. 5.6.6; σοὶ ἀστρονομεῖν χ. your province is astronomy, Philostr. VA 5.15; ἐν τοῖς ἀτέχνοις χώραν ἔχει τὸ αὐτόματον Eun. Hist. p.225D.: freq. in the phrase ὥρα καὶ χ., time and place, ἐν ὁποία ἀξία φυτευθῆναι καὶ ὥρὰ καὶ χώρᾳ Pl. Hipparch. 225c; ἐν ἄλλῃ καὶ χώρῃ Hp. Hum. 14; πρὸς ὥρας καὶ χώρας καὶ διαίτας ib. 16, Aph. 3.3; ἥ τε τοῦ ἔτους ὥρα καὶ χ. καὶ φύσις τοῦ θεραπευομένου σώματος Gal. 18(2).399, cf. Alex. Trall. 1.10, Steph. in Hp. 1.161, 180 D. b. in metric, position of a foot in a verse, τὸ δακτυλικὸν δέχεται δακτύλους καὶ σπονδείους κατὰ πᾶσαν χ. Heph. 7.1, cf. 8.1; αἱ περιτταὶ χ. Id. 5.1, 6.1.

4. metaph., station, place, position, ἐν χώρᾳ τινὸς εἶναι to be in his position, be counted the same as he is, ἐν ἀνδραπόδων or μισθοφόρου χώρᾳ εἶναι to be in the position of slaves or mercenaries, to pass or rank as such, X. An. 5.6.13, Cyr. 2.1.18; ἐν οὐδεμιᾷ χ. εἶναι to have no place or rank, be in no esteem, Id. An. 5.7.28; οὗ μέλλει χώρην μηδεμίαν θέμεναι Thgn. 152; τούτων τοι χώρη.. ὀλίγη τελέθει Id. 822; τὰς μεγίστας χ. ἔχειν Plb. 1.43.1.

5. in senses 3 and 4 freq. with a Pr, ἐκ χώρας ὁρμᾶν, opp. πορευόμενος μάχεσθαι, X. An. 3.4.33; εἰς τὰς ἑαυτῶν χ. πάρεισι are at their posts, Id. Cyr. 1.2.4, cf. Theoc. 15.57; εἰς τὰς τῶν λοχαγῶν χ. καταστήσεσθαι X. Cyr. 2.1.23; ἐν χώρᾳ in one's place, at one's post, ἐν ταῖς χ. γενέσθαι Id. An. 4.8.15; ἐν χώρᾳ πίπτειν, ἀποθνῄσκειν, die at one's post, Id. HG 4.2.20, 8.39; ἐπὶ χώρας ἕσσαι set it in its place, Pi. P. 4.273; also μένειν ἐπὶ χώρας, = μένειν κατὰ χώραν, remain in force, OGI 90.16 (Rosetta, ii B. C.), BGU 183.9 (i A. D.); κατὰ χώρην εἶναι be in one's place, Hdt. 4.135; [ φόροι] κατὰ χώρην διατελέουσι ἔχοντες Id. 6.42, cf. Ar. Pl. 367, Ra. 793; κατὰ χ. μένειν Hdt. 7.95, 8.108, Ar. Eq. 1354, Th. 4.26; ἤλπιζον.. οὐ μενεῖν κατὰ χ. τὰ πράγματα ib. 76; μένει τὸ ὅρκιον κατὰ χ. as it was, undisturbed, Hdt. 4.201; ἐᾶν κατὰ χ. τὴν πόλιν leave in its place, leave as it was, X. HG 6.5.6, cf. Hdt. 1.17; κατὰ χώραν μένειν τοὺς ἄλλους [νόμους] ἐᾶν D. 24.5; κατὰ χ. ἀπιέναι retire in their old order, X. An. 6.4.11.

II land, viz.,

1 a land, country, ἅς τινας ἵκεο χώρας ἀνθρώπων Od. 8.573; ἡ χ. ἡ Ἀττική Hdt. 9.13; ἐμπορεύεσθαι εἰς τὴν χ. IG 12.57.21, cf. 63.22, al.: freq. in Trag., Ἑλλάδα χώραν A. Pers. 271 (lyr.); Εὐβοῖδα χ. S. Tr. 74, etc.; territory, ὁ τύραννος ἢ πόλεων ἢ χ. πολλῆς [ἐπιθυμεῖ ] X. Hier. 4.7: pl., OGI 54.11 (Adule, iii B. C.), etc.

2. landed estate, X. Cyr. 8.4.28, 8.6.4. b. country town, τοὺς κήρυκας διαπέμψαντες ἐς τὰς χ. Schwyzer 688 B 8 (Chios, v B. C.).

3. the country, opp. to the town, ἡ πόλις καὶ ἡ χ. Lycurg. 1; τὰ ἐκ τῆς χώρας Th. 2.5, X. Mem. 3.6.11; ὁ ἐκ τῆς χ. γιγνόμενος σῖτος ib. 13; οἱ ἐν τῇ χ. ἐργάται Id. Hier. 10.5; ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ κοιταῖον γίγνεσθαι, opp. ἐν ἄστει, Decr. ap. D. 18.37; ἁ κοινὰ χ. (of two cities) IG 42(1).77.2 (Epid., ii B. C.): esp. of Egypt as opp. Alexandria, OGI 56.5 (Canopus, iii B. C.), PHib. 1.27.167 (iii B. C.), etc. (but in PTeb. 5.98 (ii B. C.) ἐν τῇ Ἀλεξα(νδρέων) χ. means 'in Alexandria'); ἡ ἄνω χ. καὶ ἡ κάτω, Upper and Lower Egypt, OGI 90.46 (Rosetta, ii B. C.), cf. Wilcken Chr. 109.9 (iii B. C.). — χῶρος is another form: in signf. 11 χώρα alone is used in Att.; whereas in signf. 1 χῶρος is common, exc. in the special sense of one's proper place or post (χῶρος and χώρα perh. cogn. with χῆρος, χῆτος).