μέχρι

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No

Last modification

Mon, 11/01/2021 - 13:20

Word-form

ἄχρι

Transliteration (Word)

akhri

English translation (word)

as far as, as long as

Transliteration (Etymon)

mekhri

English translation (etymon)

as far as

Author

Herodian

Century

2 AD

Reference

Peri orthographias, Lentz III/2, p. 410

Edition

A. Lentz, Grammatici graeci, vol. 3/2, Leipzig, 1870

Source

Etym. Gudianum

Ref.

Etym. Gudianum Additamenta alpha, p. 253

Ed.

E.L. de Stefani, Etymologicum Gudianum, fasc. 1 & 2, Leipzig: Teubner, 1:1909; 2:1920 (repr. Amsterdam: Hakkert, 1965)

Quotation

Ἄχρι· ἀντὶ τοῦ μέχρι ἀποβολῇ τοῦ μ καὶ μεταθέσει τοῦ ε εἰς α. οὕτως Ἡρωδιανὸς ἐν τῇ Ὀρθογραφίᾳ.

Translation (En)

Akhri "as far as": instead of mekhri "as far as", by dropping of the [m] and change of the [e] into [a]. This is what Herodian says in the Peri orthographias.

Comment

Derivational etymology which is basically correct from the modern point of view, although the process is not. It implies two formal manipulations, one in the vowel and one in the consonant. On this model, Greek etymologists formulated a rule according to which in "Doric" (according to other sources, in Ionic), whenever a [e] is turned into [a], the initial consonant is dropped: this allowed them to build pairs like μέχρι / ἄχρι, δεινός / αἰνός "terrible", περι- / ἀρι- "greatly".

Parallels

Herodian, De prosodia catholica, Lentz III/1, p. 511 (Τὰ εἰς ις λήγοντα δισύλλαβα βαρύνεται, μόλις, μόγις, ἅλις, ἄνις ἀντὶ τοῦ χωρίς, μέχρις καὶ τὸ παρ’ αὐτὸ ἄχρις); idem, Peri iliakēs prosōdias, Lentz III/2, p. 101 (ἄχρις: Ἀρίσταρχος ὡς μέχρις ἀνεγίνωσκε, παρ’ ὃ καὶ ἐγένετο); Choeroboscus, De orthographia (epitome), p. 194 (Αἰνός: Δεῖ γινώσκειν, ὅτι ἡνίκα τοῦτο τὸ δεινὸς τρέψῃ τὸ ε εἰς α, καὶ τὸ ἐν τῇ ἀρχῇ σύμφωνον, ἤγουν τὸ δ ἀποβάλῃ, αἰνὸς γίνεται, ὥσπερ μέχρι ἄχρι, κατὰ τροπὴν τοῦ ε εἰς α); Etym. Genuinum, alpha 1530 (Ἄχρι· ἕως· παρὰ τὸ μέχρι ἐπίρρημα γίνεται κατὰ ἀποβολὴν τοῦ μ καὶ † μεταθέσει τοῦ † ι εἰς α ἄχρι); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, alpha 82 (ἀρίζηλος (Β 318): σημαίνει τὸν διάδηλον καὶ φανερόν. καὶ γίνεται ἐκ τοῦ αρι ἐπιτατικοῦ· τοῦτο ἐκ τῆς περί προθέσεως· αὕτη γάρ, ἡνίκα <παρ>οξύνεται, τὸ περισσῶς σημαίνει· ‘πέρι μέν σε τίω’ (Δ 257)· καὶ Δωρικῷ ἔθει τρέπεται τὸ ε εἰς α (ἡνίκ’ ἂ<ν> δὲ τραπῇ τὸ ε εἰς α, ἀποβάλλε<τα>ι καὶ τὸ κατ’ ἀρχὴν σύμφωνον, οἷον μέχρι ἄχρι)); Etym. Gudianum Additamenta, alpha, p. 253 (Ἄχρις καὶ ἄχρι κατὰ ἀποβολὴν τοῦ ς· παρὰ δὲ τὸ μέχρι εἴρηται ἀποβολῇ τοῦ μ καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ ε εἰς α, ὡς δεινός αἰνός ἀποβολῇ τοῦ ⟦δ⟧ καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ ε εἰς ⟦α⟧); Eustathius, Comm. Il. 3, 858 Van der Valk (Γίνεται δέ, φασί, τὸ ἄχρις ἀπὸ τοῦ μέχρις ἀποβολῇ τοῦ μῦ καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ φωνήεντος); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 36 (αἴνιγμα. […] Οἱ γὰρ Ἴωνες, ἡνίκα ὕφεσιν ποιήσωνται συμφώνου, τότε καὶ τὸ παραλῆγον φωνῆεν τρέπουσιν εἰς α· οἷον δεινὸς, αἰνός· μέχρις, ἄχρις); ibid., p. 182 (Ἄχρι: Ἕως, παρὰ τὸ μέχρι ἐπίρρημα γίνεται, κατὰ ἀποβολὴν τοῦ μ, καὶ μεταθέσει τοῦ ε εἰς α); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, alpha, p. 365 (Ἄχρις. ἀντὶ τοῦ μέχρις, ἕως, κατὰ ἀποβολὴν τοῦ μ καὶ μετάθεσιν τοῦ ε εἰς α)

Modern etymology

Zero grade of μέχρι (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

No

Entry By

Le Feuvre