Dictionary

nychthemeron en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /nɪkˈθɛm.ə.ɹɒn/ (UK)
• /nɪkˈθɛməɹɑn/ (US)
• /nɪkˈθɛ.mɪ.ɹɒn/ (UK)
• (US) audio
• /nɪkˈθi.mə.ɹɑn/ (US)

Etymology

From Ancient Greek νυχθήμερον (nukhthḗmeron), noun use of the neuter singular form of νυχθήμερος (nukhthḗmeros, “lasting a day and night”), from νύξ (núx, “night”) + ἡμέρα (hēméra, “day”).

Meanings

1. (uncommon) A period of one day and one night, a date: in the West, a period of 24 consecutive hours.
   • For the division of the nychthemeron into equal parts, we are indebted to the Sumerians. Following the fiction of the ideal year of 12 months of 30 days to each, they divided the nychthemeron into 12 danna (46), each of 30 giš (47). 1936, Osiris, History of Science Society, page 112:
   • It has not yet been found by Observation, whether Mercury turns upon its own Axis, ... that is, whether it has the vicissitude of Day and Night, much less what is the space of its Nychthemeron or Natural Day; but one may safely enough conjecture that it does revolve about its Axis, since the other Planets do. 1715, David Gregory, The Elements of Astronomy, Physical and Geometrical, volume 2:
   • The first sphere moves in each nychthemeron 0° 3′ in opposite sense to the zodiac. The second sphere moves 13° 11′ in each nychthemeron in the sequence of the signs of the zodiac. 1998, Emmanuel A. Paschos, Panagiotis Sotiroudis, The Schemata of the Stars: Byzantine Astronomy from A.D. 1300:
   • Ideler passes over the Indians, and with good reason ; for they had not the week, and could not have had it, since they divided the nychthemeron into thirty hours, which the following out the same method would give rise to an entirely different series of planetary regents. 1839, The Foreign Quarterly Review, volume XXII, Black and Armstrong (London), page 181:
   • Geminus says in his Introduction to the Phenomena (VI, 1-4) that the nychthemeron (a day and night together) is not of constant length. 1998, James Evans, The History and Practice of Ancient Astronomy:
   • The Hindus consider the day as the first, the night as the second, part of the nychthemeron. There-fore they call the former Sâvana, i.e. a day depending on the rising of the sun. Besides, they call it Manu-shyâhorâtra, i.e. a human day, because, in fact, the great mass of their people do not know of any other kind of day but this. 2000, William Wilson Hunter Sir, Sekharipuram Vaidyanatha Viswanatha, Clarisse Bader, The Indian Empire: its people, history, and products:
   • Now, the Arabs assumed as the beginning of their Nychthemeron the point where the setting sun intersects the circle of the horizon. Therefore their Nychthemeron extends from the moment when the sun disappears from the horizon till his disappearance on the following day. 1879, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Bīrūnī, translated by C. Edward Sachau, The Chronology of Ancient Nations: An English Version of the Arabic Text of the Athâr-ul-Bâkiya, translation of original in Arabic:
   • Another difference at this age is the distribution of sleep and wake across the nychthemeron. 2003, William H. Moorcroft, Understanding Sleep and Dreaming, page 30:

Forms

Relateds

hypernychthemeral · date · nychthemeral · night · day

Synonyms

twenty-four hour day · 24-hour day

Translations (33)

bg деноно́щие (one day and one night) · eo tagnokto (one day and one night) · ru су́тки (one day and one night) · nn døger (one day and one night) · ka დღე-ღამე (one day and one night) · fi vuorokausi (one day and one night) · alt конок (one day and one night) · sv dygn (one day and one night) · myv чиве (one day and one night) · nb døgn (one day and one night) · lt para (one day and one night) · nl etmaal (one day and one night) · fo samdøgur (one day and one night) · az sutka (one day and one night) · bo ཞག་པོ (one day and one night) · sv dygn (one day and one night) · ba тәүлек (one day and one night) · nn døgn (one day and one night) · is sólarhringur (one day and one night) · es nictémero (one day and one night) · pt nictémero (one day and one night) · uk доба́ (one day and one night) · da døgn (one day and one night) · kk тәулік (one day and one night) · fy etmiel (one day and one night) · pt nictêmero (one day and one night) · inh ди-бийса (one day and one night) · pl doba (one day and one night) · grc νυχθήμερον (one day and one night) · he יממה (one day and one night) · fr nycthémère (one day and one night) · de Etmal (one day and one night) · mk деноноќие (one day and one night)