ιερός

Lemma: ιερός

Translation: sacred; holy; divine (adjective)

Etymology: From Ancient Greek ἱερός (hierós). This root gives us English words like 'hierarchy' (originally 'sacred rule'), 'hieroglyph' ('sacred carving'), and 'hieratic' ('priestly'). The word has maintained its religious and sacred connotations remarkably consistently throughout its history of over 3000 years.