athonite

[ ath-uh-nahyt ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Mount Athos.

Word History and Origins

Origin of athonite¹

1885–90; < Latin Athōn-, stem of Athōs (< Greek Athṓs Athos ) + -ite ¹

Example Sentences

“There is a famous tale of a Serbian king who brought his wife to Athos but, throughout, she was carried and never allowed to step on Athonite soil. Carpets were placed in all the monastery rooms to ensure that even there she didn’t touch the ground.”

From The Guardian

"The main inspiration for the design is the Athonite monasteries in Greece, with their austere, fortresslike exteriors and ornate, open, villagelike courtyards," says DDA’s principal architect, Demetrios Stavropoulos.

From Architectural Digest

From the time of Peter the Athonite to Adolf the paper hanger, the great rocky promontory of Athos, jutting into the Aegean like a prong of Poseidon's three-forked scepter, has been a place of refuge -for men only.

From Time Magazine Archive

Peter the Athonite came first to Mount Athos in the 9th Century and lived there for 50 years, battling devils and beasts in a cave high above Homer's wine-dark sea.

From Time Magazine Archive

Eleven of the Athonite monasteries are cenobitic, holding to the strict monastic ideals of early Christendom.

From Time Magazine Archive