ON THE GREEK WORDS FOR LOVE
(Rodrigo Peñaloza, July 2015)

When we talk about Love, we can’t escape from the disturbing fact that the word Love is equivocal. It may refer to a plethora of feelings. Our languages do not differentiate them because deep in our minds we haven’t nurtured the very thought of them. The Greeks, however, did.

They had four kinds of Love, each with its word or words. First, there is ἔρος (éros), which is sexual Love, the Love of a Man who is fully subject to the force of Nature, either virtuously or viciously. Another word for the same kind of Love is ἵμερος (hímeros), also with the meaning of desire and sexual passion.

Second, στοργή (storgḗ), Love with affection, the kind of Love that bonds together parents and children. It is the Love of a Man who is still subject to Nature. Instinctive as it still is, there is however an important difference of degree: it is virtuous, it expresses the virtue of bond and is complemented by good will.

Third, φιλία (philía), a higher kind of Love. It is the Love of a Man who now chooses freely whom or what to love. He is no longer subject to Nature or instincts, it is his spirit and his mind now the sole commanders. We use it for friendship, because we choose our friends; we use it to refer to our love for a subject we choose to study.

Finally, there is ἀγάπη (agápē), true and unconditional Love.