κέρας
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
ὅτι δὲ τοῖς κέρασιν ἔπινον δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ καὶ μέχρι νῦν λέγεσθαι, ὅταν συμμίσγωσι τῷ οἴνῳ τὸ ὕδωρ, κεράσαι φάσκοντες.
Translation (En)
That they used to drink from horns (kerasin) is clear from the fact that until now we say, when we mix wine with water, kerasai "to mix"
Parallels
Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae (epitome) 2/2.57 (καὶ μέχρι δὲ νῦν τὴν τοῦ οἴνου μῖξιν τῷ ὕδατι κεράσαι φάμεν καὶ τὸ ἀγγεῖον ἐν ᾧ κιρνᾶται κρατήρ, οἱονεὶ κερατήρ, ἀπὸ τοῦ εἰς κέρας ἐγχεῖσθαι τὸ πόμα); Porphyry, Quaestionum Homericarum ad Odysseam pertinentium reliquiae 5.93 (κέρασε δὲ νέκταρ ἐρυθρόν. ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐνέχεεν· οὐ γὰρ κιρνᾶται τὸ νέκταρ. εἰ οὐδὲν γὰρ ἄλλο πίνουσιν οἱ θεοὶ ἢ νέκταρ, πῶς αὐτὸ κιρνᾷ ὕδατι ἡ Καλυψώ; ἔστιν οὖν ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐνέχεεν, ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρχαίας συνηθείας· εἰς κέρας γὰρ ἐγχέοντες ἔπινον); Schol. Od. 5.93e1 Pontani (idem); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, kappa 52 (κρητήρ : […] ἀπὸ τοῦ κερῶ, ὅπερ ἀπὸ τοῦ κέρας, ὃ σημαίνει τὸ κέρατον· οἱ γὰρ παλαιοὶ κέρατι ἐχρῶντο ἀντὶ προχόου); Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 315 (Κεραννὺς, μετοχὴ, ἀντὶ τοῦ κεράας· ἔστι κέρας, καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ κερῶ κεράτω, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ κερῶ κερύω καὶ κεραννύω, καὶ παράγωγον εἰς μι κεράννυμι, καὶ ἡ μετοχὴ κεραννὺς διὰ τῶν δύο νν); ibid., p. 315 (Κεράσαι, τὸ παλαιὸν ἐν κέρατι ἔπινον, ὅθεν καὶ ἡμεῖς τὸ αὐτὸ ποιοῦμεν); ibid., p. 315 (Κεράσαι, τὸ ἐπιχέειν οἶνον ἀπὸ παλαίου ἔθους· πάλαι γὰρ ἐχρῶντο κέρατι ἀντὶ τοῦ προχόου); ibid., p. 317 (Κερῶ, ὅτι ἐν τοῖς κέρασιν οἱ παλαιοὶ ἔπινον, πρὸ τοῦ εὑρεθῆναι αὐτοὶ, τὴν τῶν ποτῶν χρείαν); ibid., p. 346 (κρητήρ: […] ὅπερ ἀπὸ τοῦ κερῶ κέρας, οἱ γὰρ παλαιοὶ κέρατι ἐχρῶντο ἀντὶ τοῦ προχό<ου>); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 538 (idem); Eustathius, Comm. Il. 3, 431 Van der Valk (καὶ ἐκ τοιούτου δὲ κέρατος καὶ τὸ μῖξαι οἶνον ὕδατι κεράσαι φαμὲν καὶ κρατῆρα τὸ εἰς τοῦτο δεξιὸν ἀγγεῖον ὡς οἷον κερατῆρα. ἐκαλεῖτο δέ, φασί, τὰ τοιαῦτα κέρατα ῥυτά); Eustathius, Comm. Od. 1, 37 Stallbaum (Ὡς δὲ κοινὸν μὲν ὁ κρατὴρ ἐκ τοῦ κερῶ κεράσω συγκοπεὶς, Ἰωνικὸν δὲ ὁ κρητὴρ ἐκ τοῦ κρῶ κρήσω ἐξ οὗ καὶ ἐπικρῆσαι τὸ ἐπικεράσαι. καὶ ὅτι παρὰ τὸ κέρας αἱ τοιαῦται λέξεις γεγόνασι); Eustathius, Exegesis in canonem iambicum pentecostalem 1.105 (Συμποτικὴ δὲ λέξις οὖσα τὸ κεραννύναι καὶ παρὰ τὸ κέρας γενομένη δι’ οὗ τὴν πόσιν οἱ παλαιοὶ προσεφέροντο); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 504 (Κεραννύς: Μετοχὴ ἀντὶ τοῦ κεράσας. Ἔστι κέρας· ἐξ αὐτοῦ κερῶ ἀντὶ τοῦ κεραννύω, ὡς πετῶ πεταννύω. Ἢ κερῶ κερύω, καὶ κεραννύω· καὶ παράγωγον, κεράννυμι· ἡ μετοχὴ, κεραννύς. Πάντα δὲ τὰ τοιαῦτα διὰ δύο ΝΝ γράφεται, ζωννύω, σβεννύω, καὶ τὰ ὅμοια. Κεράσαι δέ ἐστι, τὸ ἐπιχεῖν οἶνον· ἀπὸ παλαιοῦ ἔθους· πάλαι γὰρ ἐχρῶντο κέρατι ἀντὶ προχόου. Οὕτω Πείσανδρος ἱστορεῖ· καὶ Ὅμηρος Ἰλιάδος θʹ, ‘Οἶνόν τ’ ἐγκεράσασα πιεῖν’. Ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐγχέασα εἰς κέρας· πρὸ γὰρ τοῦ εὑρεθῆναι τὴν τῶν ποτηρίων χρῆσιν ἐν τοῖς κέρασιν ἔπινον); Tzetzes, Exegesis in Homeri Iliadem 1.32 (ὡς τὸ κεράσαι ἀπὸ τοῦ εἰς κέρας πίνειν τοὺς παλαιούς); Schol. Od. 3.332h Pontani (κεράασθε] παρὰ τὸ “κέρας”. οἱ γὰρ ἀρχαῖοι εἰς κέρας ἔπινον); Schol. Od. 5.93d Pontani (κέρασσε δὲ νέκταρ: νῦν ἐνέχεεν, ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρχαίας συνηθείας· εἰς κέρας γὰρ ἐγχέοντες ἔπινον); Schol. Nicander Al. 31b (οἱ ἀρχαῖοι κέρασιν ἐχρῶντο ἐν τῇ πόσει ἀντὶ <τῶν Y> ποτηρίων, ὅθεν καὶ τὸ κεράσαι εἴρηται)
Comment
Derivational etymology relying on the paronymic relationship between the future κεράσω, the aorist ἐκέρασα, and κέρας "horn", here "drinking horn". The nominative κέρας is simply turned into a verb (in the future) by the addition of the ending -ω. The specialized meaning "drinking horn" can account for a verb having something to do with drinking, but does not account for the meaning "to mix" wine with water, as mixing was not done in the drinking vessel (here the horn) itself but in a different vessel. Therefore the κέρας was never used for mixing. But this semantic approximation did not bother Greek etymologists. Porphyry, following Aristotle, it seems, explains that in Od. 5.93 κέρασε δὲ νέκταρ does not mean "she mixed the nectar", because nectar is not mixed with water, contrary to wine, but "she poured the nectar". Still, he retains the etymology of the verb, that κέρασε is because she poured in drinking horns (εἰς κέρας γὰρ ἐγχέοντες ἔπινον)