Phoenician

Phoe·ni·cian

noun \fi-ˈnē-shən, -ˈni-\

Definition of PHOENICIAN

1

: a native or inhabitant of ancient Phoenicia

2

: the Semitic language of ancient Phoenicia

— Phoenician adjective

First Known Use of PHOENICIAN

14th century

Rhymes with PHOENICIAN

accretion, Capetian, completion, concretion, deletion, depletion, excretion, Helvetian, Lucretian, Ossetian, repletion, secretion, suppletion, Tahitian, Venetian

Phoenician

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

One of a people of ancient Phoenicia. They were merchants, traders, and colonizers who probably arrived from the Persian Gulf c. 3000 BC. By the 2nd millennium BC they had colonies in the Levant, North Africa, Anatolia, and Cyprus. They traded wood, cloth, dyes, embroideries, wine, and decorative objects; ivory and wood carving became their specialties, and the work of Phoenician goldsmiths and metalsmiths was well known. Their alphabet became the basis of the Greek alphabet.