κείρω

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No

Last modification

Tue, 08/23/2022 - 22:55

Word-form

κάρα

Transliteration (Word)

kara

English translation (word)

head

Transliteration (Etymon)

keirō

English translation (etymon)

to cut, to shave

Author

Epimerismi homerici

Century

9 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, kappa 122

Ed.

A. Dyck, Epimerismi Homerici: Pars altera. Lexicon αἱμωδεῖν. Berlin – New York, 1995

Quotation

κάρα: παρὰ τὸ κείρω, τὸ κόπτω· ἡ κειρομένη διὰ τὸ τετριχῶσθαι <μᾶλλον> τῶν ἄλλων μερῶν τοῦ σώματος.

Translation (En)

Kara "head": from keirō "to shave": that which is shaved because it has more hair than the other parts of the body

Comment

Derivational etymology which is in fact derived from the etymology of κάρα by κέρας (see κάρα / κέρας): since κέρας itself is etymologized from κείρω "to cut", the etymon of the etymon (κείρω etymon of κέρας itself etymon of κάρα) was directly related to the lemma. This is not rare in etymological works. The head is in both cases defined by the hair, either because it is hairy or because, as hairy, it must be shaved.

Parallels

Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, kappa 3 (τὸ δὲ κάρα γίνεται ἐκ τοῦ κ⸥έρας, ὃ σημαίνει τὴν τρίχα, ⸤καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ α εἰς η Ἰωνικῶς γί⸥νεται κάρη· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κείρω ἔκαρον); Joannes Mauropus, Etymologica nominum 153-154 (Αἴρει κόρας μὲν οἷα πυρσοὺς ἡ κάρα | καὶ κείρεται δὲ τῶν μελῶν πάντων μόνη)

Modern etymology

Κάρα belongs with κέρας, both are derived from a PIE *kerh2-s- meaning "head" (Beekes)

Persistence in Modern Greek

MG still has κάρα as a learned word referring to the head of a relic

Entry By

Le Feuvre