The story
- Medieval Greek · borrowed fromὀμφαλοψυχίτης
- English todayomphalopsychite
Borrowed from Medieval Greek ὀμφαλοψυχίτης (omphalopsukhítēs), from ὀμφαλός (omphalós, “navel”) + ψυχή (psukhḗ, “soul”) + -ίτης (-ítēs, “-ite”), i.e. “one with his soul in his navel”, referring to the practice by some Hesychasts of gazing on the navel as a means to concentrate during meditation. By surface analysis, omphalo- + psych- + -ite.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.