φάος + βαίνω
Word
Validation
Yes
Word-form
βρέφος
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
brephos
English translation (word)
foetus, new-born babe
Transliteration (Etymon)
phaos + bainō
English translation (etymon)
light + to walk
Century
9 AD
Source
Etym. Gudianum
Ref.
Etym. Gudianum, beta, p. 286
Ed.
E.L. de Stefani, Etymologicum Gudianum, fasc. 1 & 2, Leipzig, 1:1909; 2:1920
Quotation
Γεωργίου τοῦ Χοιροβοσκοῦ Βρέφος· παρὰ τὸ εἰς φῶς βεβηκέναι
Translation (En)
(Georges Choeroboscus) brephos ("foetus, new-born babe") : from the fact that "it has come" (bebēkenai) to "light" (fōs)
Parallels
Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 213 (Παρὰ τὸ φέρβω, τὸ τρέφω, γίνεται φέρβος, καὶ κατὰ μετάθεσιν τῶν στοιχείων, βρέφος, τὸ δεόμενον τροφῆς. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἰς φῶς βεβηκέναι)
Modern etymology
Βρέφος is cognate with the Slavic word for "foal", OCS žrěbę, žrěbьcь (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
Βρέφος is still used in Modern Greek to denote 'a child, from the 2nd to the 12th month of birth'. "Θείο βρέφος" designates Jesus Christ. (Triandafyllidis, Dictionary of Modern Greek).
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
The word is analyzed as a compound, the second element of which, φῶς "light", was phonetically identical with -φος in Byzantin Greek, the difference was only a matter of spelling. The identification of "light" at the end of the word restrained the possibilities for the beginning of the word, and the initial [b] suggested βαίνω, which was semantically compatible. The [r] is left unexplained in the Gudianum's formulation, probably abridged