ἕως + πέρας

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Sat, 10/22/2022 - 13:10

Word-form

ἑσπέρα

Transliteration (Word)

hespera

English translation (word)

evening

Transliteration (Etymon)

heōs + peras

English translation (etymon)

dawn + limit

Author

Orion

Century

5 AD

Source

Idem

Ref.

Etymologicum, epsilon, p. 58

Ed.

F. Sturz, Orionis Thebani etymologicon, Leipzig, Weigel, 1820

Quotation

Ἑσπέρα. παρὰ τὸ ἐς πέρας εἶναι τὴν ἕω. ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἔσω ἡμᾶς περᾶν.

Translation (En)

Hespera "evening". From the fact that dawn (heō) comes to its end (peras). Or from the fact that it makes us go (perân) inside (esō)

Comment

Compositional etymology relying on a semantic equivalence between "dawn" and "day": the evening marks the end of the day. It implies a syncope in the first member ἕως > ἑσ-.

Parallels

Procopius, Commentarii in Genesim 1.5.154 (ἡ γὰρ «ἑσπέρα» τῆς ἕω καὶ τῆς ὅλης ἡμέρας ‘πέρας’ ἐστίν, ὡς πάντως ἕπεσθαι τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τὴν νύκτα); bT Schol. Il. 22.318c Erbse (ἀπὸ τοῦ ἑσπέρα ἕσπερος. τὸ δὲ ἑσπέρα παρὰ τὸ τῆς ἕω πέρας εἶναι); Joannes Mauropus, Etymologica nominum 117 (τὴν δ’ ἑσπέραν νόμιζε τῆς ἕω πέρας); Etym. Gudianum Additamenta, epsilon, p. 538 (Ἑσπέρα· ἀπὸ τοῦ πέρας εἶναι τῆς ἕ[σ]ω, τουτέστι τῆς ἡμέρας· ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἔσω ἡμᾶς περᾶν); ibid., p. 539 (Ἕσπερος· εἴτε ὁ καιρὸς εἴτε ὁ ἀστήρ· παρὰ τὸ ἔσω ποιεῖν περᾶν τὰ ζῶα καὶ ἀναπαύεσθαι· ἢ ὁ τὸ πέρας τῆς ἕω φέρων); Eustathius, Comm. Il. 4, 623 Van der Valk (ἤτοι μετὰ τὸ τῆς ἕω πέρας, ὡς δηλοῖ ὁ κατ’ αὐτὸν ἕσπερος); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 383-384 (Ἕσπερος: […] Καὶ ἑσπέρα· ἀπὸ τοῦ ἔσω ποιεῖν περᾶν τὰ ζῷα ἀναπαυσόμενα· ἢ ὁ πέρας τῆς ἕω φέρων); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, epsilon, p. 879 (Ἑσπέρα. ἡλίου στέρησις ἢ πέρας τῆς ἡμέρας· ἕως γὰρ ἡ ἡμέρα); Scholia in Aristophanem, Nub. 175 (τὴν ἑσπέραν δάσυνε· πέρας γὰρ τῆς ἕω καὶ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐστίν. ἐντεῦθεν σημειοῦ καὶ ἡμερόνυκτον λέγειν, καὶ μὴ νυχθήμερον, βοώσης αὐτῆς καὶ λαλούσης τῆς ἑσπέρας· ὅτι πέρας καὶ τελευτὴ καὶ ὑστέρα τῆς ἕω καὶ τῆς ἡμέρας εἰμί); Scholia in Euripidem, Or. 1260 (τὸ δυτικὸν, ὅτι τῆς ἠοῦς πέρας ἐστὶν ἢ ὅτι τότε εἰς ἑαυτοὺς περῶμεν)

Modern etymology

Cognate with Latin uesper, OCS večerъ, Arm. gišer, and with a different meaning Skr. kṣáp- "night", Hitt. išpant- "night" (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

Εσπέρα is still used in Modern Greek to designate the period between sunset and night (M. Triandafyllidis Dictionary of Modern Greek)

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