IN GREEK
κόρφος
korfos
bosom; bay or inlet in older usage
IN TURKISH
körfez
körfez
gulf; bay
WEAR THE WORD
κόρφος in blue ink and körfez in red, on a T shirt, a tote or a mug.
THE RECORD
- LENT BY, BORROWED BY
- Greek to Turkish
- STARTED IN
- Greek
- CATEGORY
- Places
- HOW THE MEANING DRIFTED
- Modern Greek κόρφος primarily denotes a person's bosom, while Turkish körfez means a gulf or bay.
- NOTES
- The coastal sense is more restricted or literary in modern standard Greek.
COMMENTS
An editor reads every comment before it appears.
SOURCES
- Rona & Dedes (2007), “Languages in Contact: Greek Loanwords in Turkish”, Journal of Turkish Studies 31/2, p. 185 makale.isam.org.tr
Etymologies are checked against the dictionaries and studies listed. An entry is stamped settled only when both the Greek and the Turkish side have been checked. Research for this ledger was compiled with AI assistance and reviewed by the editors.
HOW TO CITE THIS ENTRY
Gold, K. (ed.) (2026) ‘κόρφος / körfez’, entry 304, Defter ή Tefteri: a ledger of shared Greek and Turkish words. https://defteritefteri.com/en/w/304-korfos/. Accessed [day month year].