ῥᾴδιος + ἔχω
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
ῥάχις
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
rhakhis
English translation (word)
spine
Transliteration (Etymon)
rhaidios + ekhō
English translation (etymon)
easy + to hold
Century
11 AD
Source
Idem
Ref.
Etymologica nominum 210
Ed.
R. Reitzenstein, M. Terentius Varro und Johannes Mauropus von Euchaita: eine Studie zur Geschichte der Sprachwissenschaft, Leipzig: Teubner, 1901
Quotation
ἔχει δὲ πάντας ῥᾷστα καὶ κρατεῖ ῥάχις
Translation (En)
The spine (rhakhis) holds (ekhei) everything very easily (rhaista) and is the main <bone>
Parallels
There is no parallel
Modern etymology
Unclear (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG has ράχη, with the derivative ραχιαίος, ραχιτικός, ραχίτιδα
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Compositional etymology, relying on the fact that the backbone is the central piece of the human body, therefore the main one (κρατεῖ). Of "easily" (ῥᾳδίως) only the first syllable is kept, as usual for the first member of a compositional etymology, and the initial [e] of ἔχω is dropped