Octostyles

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A style of ancient temple architecture characterized by having eight columns at the front; a classical design motif featuring eight evenly spaced pillars supporting a portico; an architectural form distinguished by the presence of eight frontal columns that define the building's entrance
2. A classical design for temples or buildings identified by eight columns arranged along its façade; an architectural term denoting a structure with a front supported by eight pillars; a style of classic temple layout featuring a set of eight columns at the frontal side for structural and decorative purposes
3. An ancient architectural pattern where the front of a temple displays eight columns in a row; a temple design identified by having eight vertical supports forming the porch; a term used to describe classical buildings with a distinctive set of eight columns at the entrance section

Etymology: "Octostyles" is the plural of "octostyle," a term for a temple front with eight columns. Its parts are both Greek in origin. The first, "octo-," comes from Greek "oktō," meaning eight, a numeral that also gave English "octopus," "octave," and "October," the eighth month of the old Roman calendar. The second, "-style," comes from Greek "stylos," meaning a pillar or column, the same root that gives "stylus," the pointed writing tool that was once a column-shaped implement. Put together, the word simply describes a building whose front is held up by eight columns. The formation is a plain compound, with no myth or famous coiner behind it, so its history is mostly the history of its two building blocks. Ancient Greek architects used the same logic in their other terms, such as "tetrastyle" for four columns and "hexastyle" for six, which share this pattern.

Synonyms: eight-column structures