πίων + γῆ
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
πηγή
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
pēgē
English translation (word)
font, source
Transliteration (Etymon)
piōn + gē
English translation (etymon)
fat, rich + earth
Century
11 AD
Source
Idem
Ref.
Etymologica nominum 69
Ed.
R. Reitzenstein, M. Terentius Varro und Johannes Mauropus von Euchaita: eine Studie zur Geschichte der Sprachwissenschaft, Leipzig: Teubner, 1901
Quotation
πηγὴ δὲ τῆς γῆς ἐστι πιότης φίλη
Translation (En)
The source (pēgē) is the dear richness (piotēs) of the earth (gēs)
Parallels
There is no parallel
Modern etymology
Doric πᾱγᾱ́. Unknown etymology, a connection with πήγνυμι "to fix in" being semantically awkward (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG still has πηγή "source"
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Compositional etymology. The first member is probably the adjective πίων "fat, rich", often used as an epithet of the soil in poetry, rather than the abstract noun πιότης "richness" used in Mauropus' wording. The font is what makes the soil fertile, and the compound is intended with a factitive meaning.