ὅρος
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Reference
Edition
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
⸤ὅρκια⸥ (Β 124): […]⸤Δασύνει⸥ ὁ Ἡρωδιανός (1, 545, 13). ἐκ τοῦ ὅρος· ἐξ αὐτοῦ ὅρκος· οἱ γὰρ ὀμνύοντες ὁρίζονται καὶ ὀ⸤μν⸥ύουσιν.
Translation (En)
horkia "victims of the sacrifice warranting the oath": Herodian writes the word with a rough breathing, <saying it comes> from horos "boundary", from which horkos "oath", because those who swear draw a limit and swear.
Parallels
Stephanus Byz., Ethnica 15, 20 (οἶκος: Ἡρωδιανὸς μὲν παρὰ τὸ εἴκω, ἐν ᾧ εἴκομεν. δύναται δὲ εἶναι τὸ ἴδιον ἐνδιαίτημα παρὰ τὸ οἶον τὸ μόνον ἐῶ μονούμενος κατὰ πλεονασμὸν τοῦ κ ὡς ὅρος ὅρκος); Etym. Gudianum, omicron, p. 435 (Ὅρκος, παρὰ τὸ εἵργειν καὶ κωλύειν τὸ παραβαίνειν, τροπῇ τοῦ γ εἰς κ· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ὅρος εἶναι καὶ ἀσφάλεια· τὸ δὲ κ πλεονάζει· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κωλύειν ἡμᾶς παραβαίνειν τὴν ἀληθείαν); ibid., p. 434 (Ὅρκις, παρὰ τὸ εἵργω τὸ κωλύω ὁργὸς καὶ ὁρκὸς, ἐπισχετικὸν γὰρ τῶν παραβαινόντων· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀρκεῖν καὶ βοηθεῖν, ὡς γὰρ βοηθήματι αὐτῷ χρῶνται οἱ ἀδικούμενοι, ἄρκος καὶ ὅρκος· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ὅρος πλεονασμῷ τοῦ κ ὅρκος.); Eustathius, Comm. Il. 1, 355 Van der Valk (Γίνεται δὲ ὁ ὅρκος ὅθεν καὶ τὸ ἕρκος· ἐκ τοῦ εἵργω γάρ, τὸ ἐγκλείω· καθείργνυται γάρ πως ὁ ὀμνύων, οἷς ὁμολογεῖ· Κατὰ δὲ τοὺς παλαιοὺς παρὰ τὸ ὅρος ἀρσενικόν. ὁρίζονται γάρ τι ὁμολογητικῶς οἱ ὀμνύοντες. συντελεῖ δὲ εἰς τὴν πρώτην ἐτυμολογίαν καὶ ἡ ὁρκάνη ἕρκος τι οὖσα, ὡς ἀκανθῶδες περίφραγμα); Geneva Scholion Il. 1.233bis ([ὅρκος] παρὰ τὸ εἵργω τὸ κωλύω ὅργος καὶ ὅρκος· ἐπιθετικὸς γὰρ τῶν παραβαινόντων· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἐπαρκεῖν καὶ βοηθεῖν· ὡς γὰρ βοηθήματι αὐτῷ χρῶνται οἱ δικαζόμενοι· ἄρκος καὶ ὅρκος, καὶ ὅρκιος· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ὅρος, πλεονασμῷ τοῦ κ, ὅρκος· οἱ γὰρ ὀμνύντες ὁρίζονται καὶ ὁμολογοῦσι. δασύνεται <δὲ> ἐν τῇ συναλοιφῇ); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 631 (Ὅρκος: Ἐκ τοῦ ὅρος· οἱ γὰρ ὀμνύοντες ὁρίζονται καὶ ὀμνύουσιν· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀρκῶ, τὸ βοηθῶ· ὥσπερ γὰρ βοηθήματι αὐτῷ ἐχρῶντο οἱ ἀδικούμενοι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἴργω· ἐπισχετικὸν γάρ ἐστι τῶν παραβῆναι βουλομένων· παρὰ οὖν τὸ εἴργειν καὶ κωλύειν τοῦ παραβαίνειν, ὅργος· καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ γ εἰς κ, ὅρκος. Ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ ὅρκου γίνεται ὅρκιος. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἕρκος καὶ τειχίον εἶναι τῷ ὀμνύοντι, μὴ παραβῆναι τὰς συνθήκας)
Comment
The derivation from ὅρος "boundary" requires only one formal change, the addition of a letter. From the semantic point of view, this etymology is similar to the one suggesting ἕρκος as the etymon: the fence (ἕρκος) is a kind of boundary (ὅρος). This amounts to a functional etymology: the function of the oath is to bind him who swears and to limit his freedom of action. The etymology was used by Herodian as a justification of the rough breathing.