μαίομαι
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
μαῖα
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
maia
English translation (word)
midwife
Transliteration (Etymon)
maiomai
English translation (etymon)
to seek
Century
1 BC
Reference
fr. *148
Edition
C. Theodoridis, Die Fragmente des Grammatikers Philoxenos [Sammlung griechischer und lateinischer Grammatiker (SGLG) 2]. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1976
Source
Photius
Ref.
Bibliotheca, codex 279, 531a
Ed.
R. Henry, Photius. Bibliothèque, 8 vols., Paris: Les Belles Lettres, 1959-1977
Quotation
μαίεσθαι δὲ καὶ Ὅμηρος οἶδε τὸ ζητεῖν καὶ μαῖάν φαμεν τὴν ζητοῦσαν ἰατρὸν τὸ κρυπτόμενον.
Translation (En)
Homer knows maiesthai “to seek” as well and we call maia the midwife seeking what is hidden.
Other translation(s)
Homère connaît aussi maiesthai « chercher » et nous appelons maia la sage-femme qui cherche ce qui est caché.
Parallels
Meletius, De natura hominis, p. 10 (ὅτι καὶ μαίω τὸ ζητῶ ἐστι, φησὶν Ὅμηρος· μαιομένη κευθμῶνα. (Od. Ν. 367.) ἐκ τούτου καὶ μαῖα ἡ κατὰ γαστρὸς τῶν γυναικῶν ζητοῦσα τὰ βρέφη); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. *574 (Μαίας: Ὁ Ἑρμῆς, παρὰ τὸ μαίεσθαι τὸν λόγον)
Modern etymology
Nursery word (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG still has μαία "midwife"
Entry By
Eva Ferrer
Comment
Derivational etymology, of the functional type.