ὕω + δρόσος
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
ὕδωρ
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
hudōr
English translation (word)
water
Transliteration (Etymon)
huō + drosos
English translation (etymon)
to rain + dew
Century
11 AD
Source
Id.
Ref.
Etymologica nominum 45
Ed.
R. Reitzenstein, M. Terentius Varro und Johannes Mauropus von Euchaita: eine Studie zur Geschichte der Sprachwissenschaft, Leipzig: Teubner, 1901
Quotation
Ὕει δρόσον ῥέουσαν ὁ κρατῶν ὕδωρ
Translation (En)
The Lord sends a rain (huei) of flowing dew (droson), water (hudōr)
Parallels
There is no parallel
Modern etymology
Ὕδωρ is the old name of "water", inherited from PIE, cognate with Lat. unda, Engl. water, Hitt. u̯ātar etc. (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
The word is still used in MG in scientific language and particular phrases (e.g., περί ανέμων και υδάτων). However, υδατο- is widely used in compounds, e.g., υδατογραφία, υδατοδιαλυτός (Triandafyllidis, Dict. of MG)
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Compositional etymology, in which the verb "to rain" accounts for the initial [hu] and :dew" for the second syllable: this implies a metathesis of [dro] > [dor], followed by lengthening. This can be understood as an elaboration on the derivational etymology ὕδωρ / ὕει.