Meanings
Orontes1
Orontes2
- The name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings.
Synonyms & antonyms
proper nounA river in West Asia, about 400 km (250 mi) long, flowing from Lebanon through Syria before entering the Mediterranean Sea near Samandağ in Turkey.
Origin
Orontes · proper noun
- Old Median*Arvand
- Egyptianjrnt“Orontes; river flowing by Qadesh”
- Akkadian𒀀𒊏𒀭𒌓“Orontes; site of the Battle of Qarqar”
- Ancient GreekὈρόντης
- LatinOrontēs
- EnglishOrontes
From Latin Orontēs, from Ancient Greek Ὀρόντης (Oróntēs), from Akkadian 𒀀𒊏𒀭𒌓 (Arāntu, “Orontes; site of the Battle of Qarqar”) and also in Egyptian jrnt (“Orontes; river flowing by Qadesh”) attested at least from the period of Ramesses II: * The meaning of which is contested with connections to: Akkadian 𒀀𒊏𒀭𒌓 (arantu, “a type of grass; fennel”), perhaps in connection to the region around the city of Ugarit, the ruins today being known as رَأْس شَمْرَة (raʔs šamra, “Headland or Cape Fennel”). * Also connected to Akkadian 𒀀𒊏𒀭𒁺 (araddu, arantu, “wild ass; stubborn”), possibly related to the modern name for the river الْعَاصِي (al-ʕāṣī, “rebel, stubbornly in error, refusing to be corrected”) so-called for its flowing south to the north unlike the rest of the rivers in the region. * Disputably from Old Median *Arvand; compare Avestan 𐬀𐬎𐬭𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬧𐬝- (aᵘruuaṇt̰-, “swift”). Doublet of Alvand and Arvand. More at Orontes.
More words from Latin, Ancient Greek, Akkadian
Full word history & related roots →Orontes · proper noun
- Proto-Iranian*Raivant-
- Old Median*Arēvand
- Ancient GreekὈρόντης
- LatinOrontēs
- EnglishOrontes
From Latin Orontēs, from Ancient Greek Ὀρόντης (Oróntēs), from Old Median *Arēvand, from Proto-Iranian *Raivant-, *Rayivant- (“possessing wealth”); see Old Armenian Երուանդ (Eruand) for more.
More words from Latin, Ancient Greek, Old Median
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek Ὀρόντης, Ὀρόντης
- Ὀρόντης (Oróntēs)river in West Asia
- Ὀρόντης (Oróntēs)the name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings
Arabic الْعَاصِي
- الْعَاصِي (al-ʕāṣī)river in West Asia
Finnish Orontes
- Orontesriver in West Asia
French Oronte, Assi
- Oronteriver in West Asia
- Assiriver in West Asia
German Orontes
- Orontesriver in West Asia
Hungarian Orontész
- Orontészriver in West Asia
Italian Oronte
- Oronteriver in West Asia
Latin Orontēs, Orontēs
- Orontēsriver in West Asia
- Orontēsthe name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings
Persian عاصی, اروند
- عاصی ('âsi)river in West Asia
- اروند (arvand)the name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings
Polish Orontes, Orontes
- Orontesriver in West Asia
- Orontesthe name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings
Russian Оро́нт, Ерванд
- Оро́нт (Orónt)river in West Asia
- Ерванд (Jervand)the name of any one of a number of ancient Armenian kings
Turkish Asi
- Asiriver in West Asia
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
Orontes. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Orontes
“Orontes.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Orontes. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Orontes,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Orontes.
Source: Orontes on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.