In the Russian language there are often words that have several meanings. In philology, such words are called homonyms.
Greek coins
In ancient Greece, mite is a small bargaining chip. In ancient Greek, "leptos" means "small, small." That is, we can conclude that mite was the lightest and smallest coin in the Greek monetary system. The coin went into circulation after the reign of Alexander the Great. If we talk about the face value of the coin, then the mite is:
- 1/7 part of a hulkunt;
- 1/2 codrant;
- 1/56 obol.
Lepta is a coin that was used in modern Greece until 2002, until the euro was introduced into the country. We can say that in Hellas of the XX-XXI centuries, these coins had the same meaning as our penny. For example, 1 drachma was equal to 100 mites. It was used as a bargaining chip from 1827 to 2002.
Rivers in the Komi Republic
There is another meaning of the word "mite". In the Komi Republic, two rivers with the same name flow. One of them is a tributary of the larger Northern Mylva River. The length of the water artery is 37 kilometers. Belongs to the basin of the Pechora River.
A second river of the same name flows into the Timsher. Geographically, this waterway is located near Syktyvkar. The length of the river is only 15 kilometers. The originality of this water body is that streams having such a relatively short length rarely have names.
Other meanings of the term
This word can be safely called ambiguous. Many probably heard the expression "make a contribution." The essence of this phrase can be interpreted both in a positive and in a negative sense. For example, a group of people planned some kind of common business. Everyone has a certain amount of work to do. People completed the tasks assigned to them, and the overall result was obtained. In this case, they say that everyone contributed to the success of the enterprise. In a negative sense, this can be interpreted. Someone is very bad. He believes that many people created problems in his life. In the thoughts of people in such a state, the phrase often slip that everyone has contributed to what is now with the person.
Also, the term "mite" is a certain alms, alms. Nobleness is a feature that is not very characteristic of modern people, but nevertheless, many today are engaged in charity. In this case, it is worth talking about the collection of serious sums of money that patients need for treatment and complex operations. In such cases, fundraising through charitable foundations is often announced. Organizations provide information about those in need of serious material support to the media. After that, everyone can transfer money to the specified bank account. When the required amount is collected, the patient undergoes surgery. After successful completion of treatment, everyone can say that he has contributed to the healing process of a person.
In addition to the above interpretations, the meaning of the word “mite” also applies to marital relations. In ancient Russia, a woman who lost her husband (widow) was called a mite. It was understood that the family remained incomplete, because its foundation is man. Lepta is the remainder of the full surname.
It is so interesting that one short word can have several different meanings.