Synizesis (/ˌsɪnəˈziːsɪs/) is a sound change (metaplasm) in which two originally syllabic vowels are pronounced as a single syllable without change in writing. In Latin and Greek, the reason was often to preserve meter, but similar changes can occur naturally.
Contents
A tie may be used to represent this pronunciation: dē͡hinc (i.e., deinc).
Greek
Homer:
Latin
Vergil's Aeneid:
Etymology
Synizesis comes from the Greek συνίζησις "a sitting together" from σύν "with" and ἵζω "I sit".
References
Synizesis Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA