κάρα
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
κέρας
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
keras
English translation (word)
horn
Transliteration (Etymon)
kara
English translation (etymon)
head
Century
11 AD
Source
idem
Ref.
Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 315
Ed.
F. Sturz, Etymologicum Graecae linguae Gudianum et alia grammaticorum scripta e codicibus manuscriptis nunc primum edita, Leipzig: Weigel, 1818
Quotation
Κέρας, παρὰ τὸ κάρα, ἐπεὶ ἐκ τῆς κεφαλῆς ἐστι
Translation (En)
Keras "horn": from kara "head", because it grows from the head
Parallels
Ibid., kappa, p 315 (Κέρατα, διὰ τὸ εἰς τὴν κάραν τείνεσθαι); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 504 (Κέρας: Παρὰ τὸ κάρα· ἐπεὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς ἐστιν); Schol. in Sophoclis Ajacem 297b (recentiora) (κέρας. ἀπὸ τοῦ κρὰς κρατός· ἐξ αὐτοῦ γὰρ ἀναφύονται εἰς καλλωπισμόν)
Modern etymology
Κέρας belongs with κάρα, both are derived from a PIE *kerh2 -s- meaning "head" (Beekes)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG has κέρας as a learned word, the usual word is κέρατο
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Derivational descriptive etymology relying on a metonymy. It implies one formal change, that of the vowel. The interesting point is that it is a reversible etymology (see κάρα / κέρας)