List of Greek place-names and feminine ethnic/place-name formations in -ισσα/-εσσα (e.g., Μέλισσα, Ἄμφισσα, Ἀντίσσα), morphological notes on spelling and derivation, accentuation remark (proparoxytone before ου), citations (Homer, Hecataeus, Theopompus, Didymus).
φησί. Μένιππος δὲ χωρίον Τραπεζοῦντος ἐν περίπλῳ τῶν δύο πόντων. Ἑκαταῖος δὲ καὶ Θεόπομπος πόλιν αὐτήν φασιν. μέτασσα παρὰ τὸ μετά »χωρὶς δὲ μέτασσαι« (Od. ι 221). Ἔδεσσα πόλις Συρίας ἀποικία τῆς ἐν Μακεδονίᾳ. Ποιήεσσα πόλις τῆς Κέω. Σύεσσα καλύβη τις ἐν Λυκίᾳ ἀπὸ Συέσσης γραός τινος ὑποδεξαμένης τὴν Λητὼ καὶ Σύεσσα πόλις Τυρρηνῶν. Σινόεσσα πόλις Σικελίας. Τειχιόεσσα πόλις Μιλησίας. Ὑδρόεσσα· οὕτως ἡ Τῆνος ἐκαλεῖτο διὰ τὸ κατάρρυτον εἶναι. Ἀκριόεσσα πόλις ἐν Πόντῳ, Ἡρακλείας ὑποτελής. Δομίτιος Καλλίστρατος ἐν τετάρτῃ περὶ Ἡρακλείας. Πύργησσα πολίχνιον Ἰταλίας. Μάρπησσα ὄρος Πάρου. Τρίνησσα τόπος Φρυγίας. Θεόπομπος Ἑλληνικῶν τετάρτῳ. Πέτροσσα νῆσος Κιλικίας. Τίλφωσσα, Βοιωτίας κρήνη καὶ ὄρος ἀπὸ Τιλφώσσης νύμφης. γράφεται καὶ δι´ ἑνὸς 'σ'. μέλισσα καὶ Μέλισσα θυγάτηρ Ἐπιδάμνου, ἧς καὶ τοῦ Ποσειδῶνος ὁ Δυρράχιος. ἀφ´ ἧς ἔστιν ἐν Ἐπιδάμνῳ τόπος Μελισσώνιος, ἔνθα Ποσειδῶν αὐτῇ συνῆλθεν, ὡς Φίλων. ἔστι καὶ Μέλισσα πόλις Λιβύων. Ἑκαταῖος Ἀσίᾳ. καὶ ἐν Κυζίκῳ κώμη Μέλισσα. Ἄμφισσα πόλις Ὀζολῶν Λοκρῶν. ἔστι δὲ παραγωγὴ ἐκ τῆς ἀμφί ὡς ἐκ τῆς ἀντί Ἄντισσα· ἔστι δὲ πόλις Λέσβου ἐφεξῆς τῷ Σιγρίῳ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀντίσσης τῆς Μάκαρος θυγατρός, ἐν τοῖς Φίλωνος. ἔστι καὶ νῆσος μία τῶν Κυκλάδων καὶ τρίτη Ἰνδικῆς, ἣν ἀναγράφει Φίλων καὶ Δημοδάμας ὁ Μιλήσιος—καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἐπί ἔπισσα παρ´ Ἑκαταίῳ. »Μνημοσύνης ἢ Λητογενοῦς χαρίεντος ἔπισσα«. Ἄργισσα πόλις ἡ ὕστερον Ἄργουρα. Πίτνισσα πόλις Λυκαονίας. ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὰ παρεσχηματισμένα, Μάκεσσα, Θρέϊσσα, Ἀράβισσα, Αἰθιόπισσα, Καππαδόκισσα, πανδόκισσα, Φοίνισσα, Κίλισσα, βασίλισσα, Ἀρκάδισσα, Καβάλισσα ἡ Καβαλίς, ὁ πολυίστωρ Ἀλέξανδρος, Μολύκρισσα, Κούρισσα, Λίβυσσα. ἔστι δὲ καὶ φρούριον Βιθυνίας ἐπιθαλάσσιον, ὡς πολυίστωρ Ἀλέξανδρος. Βέβρυσσα. τὰ δὲ παραλήγοντα τῇ 'ου', εἰ μὲν ἔχοιεν ἓν 'σ', προπαροξύνεται· Φαέθουσα θυγάτηρ Ἡλίου, Ἀρέθουσα, κρήνη Σικελίας. αὕτη Κυπάρα ἐλέγετο. ἔστι καὶ Ἰθάκης »πὰρ Κόρακος πέτρῃ ἐπί τε κρήνῃ Ἀρεθούσῃ. Ὅμηρος (Od. ν 408). Δίδυμος ὑπομνηματίζων τὴν 'ν' τῆς Ὀδυσσείας
He says: Menippus, in his Periplus of the two seas, calls it a district of Trapezus; but Hecataeus and Theopompus say it is a city. μέτασσα from μετά; “but apart, μέτασσαι” (Od. ι 221). Edessa, a city of Syria, a colony of the one in Macedonia. Poiēessa, a city of Ceos. Syessa, a certain hut in Lycia, from Syessa, an old woman who received Leto; and Syessa, a city of the Tyrrhenians. Sinoessa, a city of Sicily. Teichioessa, a city of the Milesians. Hydrōessa: thus Tenos was called because it is well-watered. Akriōessa, a city in Pontus, subject to Heracleia. Domitius Callistratus in the fourth book On Heracleia. Pyrgēssa, a small town of Italy. Marpēssa, a mountain of Paros. Trinēssa, a place of Phrygia. Theopompus in the fourth book of the Hellenica. Petrōssa, an island of Cilicia. Tilphōssa, a spring and a mountain of Boeotia, from the nymph Tilphōssa; it is also written with a single σ. μέλισσα, and Melissa, daughter of Epidamnus, from whom and Poseidon came Dyrrachium; from her there is in Epidamnus a place called Melissōnion, where Poseidon lay with her, as Philo says. There is also Melissa, a city of the Libyans; Hecataeus in the Asia. And in Cyzicus there is a village Melissa. Amphissa, a city of the Ozolian Locrians; it is a derivative from ἀμφί, as Antissa is from ἀντί. Antissa is a city of Lesbos next to Sigrium, named from Antissa, daughter of Macar, in Philo’s works. There is also an island, one of the Cyclades, and a third in India, which Philo and Demodamas of Miletus record; and from ἐπί comes ἔπισσα in Hecataeus: “ἔπισσα of Mnemosyne or of fair Leto’s offspring.” Argissa, a city later called Argoura. Pitnissa, a city of Lycaonia. Likewise also the reshaped forms: Makessa, Threïssa, Arabissa, Aithiopissa, Kappadokissa, pandokissa, Phoinissa, Kilissa, basilissa, Arkadissa, Kabalissa (Kabalis), as Alexander the polymath says; Molykrissa, Kourissa, Libyssa. There is also a coastal fort of Bithynia, as Alexander the polymath says: Bebryssa. But those ending in -ουσα, if they have a single σ, are accented on the antepenult: Phaëthousa, daughter of Helios; Arethousa, a spring of Sicily—this was called Kypara; and there is also in Ithaca “by the rock of Corax and at the spring Arethousa.” Homer (Od. ν 408). Didymus, commenting on the ν of the Odyssey…