φλέγω + βαίνω
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
φλέβες
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
phleps
English translation (word)
vein
Transliteration (Etymon)
phlegō + bainō
English translation (etymon)
to burn + to go
Century
11 AD
Source
idem
Ref.
Etym. Gudianum, phi, p. 553
Ed.
F.W. Sturz, Etymologicum Graecae linguae Gudianum et alia grammaticorum scripta e codicibus manuscriptis nunc primum edita, Leipzig: Weigel, 1818
Quotation
Φλέβες, ἀπὸ τοῦ τὸν φλ<ο>γ<ω>δέστατον χυμὸν περιέχειν, τουτ’ ἔστι τοῦ αἵματος· φλέβες οὖν παρὰ τὸ δι’ αὐτῶν βαίνειν τὸ φλογῶδες [NB : Sturz prints φλεγεδέστατον, the reading here is corrected after the Etym. Magnum]
Translation (En)
Phlebes "veins", from the fact they carry around the hot liquid, that is, that of the blood. So, the word phoebes comes from the fact that the fire-like (phlogōdes) substance goes (bainein) through them
Parallels
Etym. Magnum, Kaiilerges, p. 795 (Φλέβες: Ἀπὸ τοῦ τὸν φλογωδέστατον χυμὸν παρέχειν, τουτέστι τὸν τοῦ αἵματος. Φλέβες οὖν, παρὰ τὸ δι’ αὐτῶν βαίνειν τὸ φλογῶδες); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, phi, p. 1814 (Φλέβες. ἀπὸ τοῦ τὸν χυμωδέστερον χυμὸν περιέχειν, τουτέστι τοῦ αἵματος. φλέβες οὖν παρὰ τὸ δι’ αὐτῶν βαίνειν τὸ φλογῶδες)
Modern etymology
Unknown (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG still has φλέβα "vein"
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Compositional etymology, relating φλέψ to φλέγω "to burn", because the blood circulating in the veins is warm. The recourse to βαίνω as a second member is meant to account for the fact that the final consonant is a labial stop, whereas φλέγω has a velar stop. This could have been explained by assuming a pathos (a formal change with no consequence on meaning), the change of /g/ to /b/, but instead a compositional etymology was preferred