Bithynium
/bɪˈθɪniəm/noun
An ancient city of Bithynia in northwestern Anatolia, corresponding approximately to modern Bolu, Turkey.
Did you know?Bithynium was associated with Antinous, the beloved companion of the Roman emperor Hadrian, who was traditionally said to have been born there.
Etymological Timeline
Before the 1st century BCE
Ancient Anatolian/Greek
Βιθύνιον (Bithýnion)
“The Greek name of a city in the region inhabited by the Bithyni; the deeper origin of the ethnic name is uncertain.”
Hellenistic period
Ancient Greek
Βιθύνιον
“A settlement in Bithynia, formed with the Greek diminutive or place-name suffix -ion.”
1st century BCE–1st century CE
Latin
Bithynium
“Latinized name for the city in the Roman geographical tradition.”
2nd century CE
Roman Greek
Bithynium
“A city noted in accounts of Bithynia and connected in later tradition with Antinous.”
Modern historical usage
English
Bithynium
“The conventional English scholarly name for the ancient city, generally identified with modern Bolu, Turkey.”