εἰπεῖν + ἄγω
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
Πώγων. ὥσπερ Ἀπολλόδωρος, ὅτι πῆξιν ἡλικίας σημαίνει. ὡς δὲ ἄλλοι, ὅτι ἐπὶ τὸ εἰπεῖν <ἄ>γει· ἱκανοὶ γὰρ οἱ γενιῶντες πρὸς τὸ λέγειν. Σωρανός [Orion's main manuscript has λέγει instead of ἄγει, restored from other sources]
Translation (En)
Pōgōn "beard". As Apollodorus says, because it is the sign that adulthood is fixed (pēxin). But as others say, it is because it leads (agei) to speech (eipein), because those who have a beard are able to speak <publicly>. Soranus
Parallels
Choeroboscus, Epimerismi in Psalmos, p. 182 (Πώγων, παρὰ τὸ ἔπω, τὸ λέγω, καὶ τὸ ἄγω, ὁ ἐν τῷ λέγειν ἀγόμενος); Etym. Gudianum, pi, p. 488 (Πώγων, παρὰ τὸ ἐν τῷ εἰπεῖν ἄγεσθαι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ πήσσω τὸ πηγνύω πήγων καὶ πώγων, ὁ ἐν τῷ εἰπεῖν ἑδραῖος καὶ ἀμετακίνητος ὤν); ibid., p. 488 (Πώγων, παρὰ τὸ εἰπεῖν ἄγειν· ἔστι γὰρ ἔπω τὸ λέγω, καὶ ἄγω τὸ φέρω, καὶ ἐκ τούτων γίνεται ἐπώγων, καὶ ἀποβολῇ τοῦ ε πώγων· ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ εἰπεῖν ἄγων); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 698 (Πώγων: Ὡς μὲν Ἀπολλόδωρος, ὅτι πῆξιν ἡλικίας σημαίνει· ὡς δὲ ἄλλοι, ὅτι ἐπὶ τὸ εἰπεῖν ἄγει· ἱκανοὶ γὰρ ἤδη οἱ γενειῶντες πρὸς τὸ λέγειν. Παρὰ τὸ πήσσω οὖν, πήξω πέπηγα, πήγων, καὶ πώγων, ὁ πεπηγὼς καὶ ἑδραῖος τόπος)
Comment
Compositional etymology. The growth of beard means the young man is now an adult and consequently a citizen who has the right to speak in the assembly. Therefore the beard "leads" to public speech. The etymology is listed by Oiron as Soranus': it means that it was mentioned by Soranus, not necessarily that Soranus subscribed to it. We know Soranus was particularly fond of compositional etymologies, and this one would be another one.