δέος

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No

Last modification

Thu, 08/17/2023 - 15:30

Word-form

δήϊος

Transliteration (Word)

dēios

English translation (word)

inimical, terrible

Transliteration (Etymon)

deos

English translation (etymon)

fear

Author

Etym. Magnum

Century

12 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 263

Ed.

T. Gaisford, Etymologicum magnum, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1848 (repr. Amsterdam: Hakkert, 1967)

Quotation

Δήϊος: Ὁ πολεμικός· καὶ ἐπίθετον τοῦ πολέμου, ‘Δήϊον ἐς πόλεμον’. Καὶ πάλιν σημαίνει τὸν ἐχθρὸν καὶ πολέμιον, ‘καὶ δηίοισι’. Παρὰ τὸ δέος, δέϊος, καὶ δήϊος, ὁ δέος ἐμποιῶν. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ δαίω, τὸ καίω, δάϊος, καὶ δήϊος, ὁ καυστικός. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ δαίω, τὸ κόπτω, δήϊος, ὁ διακοπτικὸς ἀνθρώπων καὶ οἴκων καὶ πόλεων καὶ δένδρων.  

Translation (En)

Dēïos "inimical": the warlike one. And it is an epithet of polemic "war", "Dēïon es polemon". And it means warlike and enemy, ‘kai dēïoisi’ "and for the enemies". From deos "fear", *deïos and dēïos, he who raises fear. Or  from daiō "to burn", daïos and dēïos, the burning one. Or from daiō "to divide", dēïos, the one who destroys men, houses, cities and trees

Comment

Derivational etymology. Lentz attributes it to Herodian but this is far from certain. The etymology relies on the familiar alternation between ε and η. From the semantic point of view, it is rather unusual: the lemma (enemy) is the cause of the etymon (fear)

Parallels

Herodian, Peri pathôn, III/2, p. 353 (δήϊος: παρὰ τὸ δέος δέϊος καὶ δήϊος ὁ δέος ἐμποιῶν); Etym. Symeonis, delta 159 (Δήϊος· ὁ πολεμικὸς καὶ ἐπίθετον τοῦ πολέμου· δήϊον ἐς πόλεμον. Παρὰ τὸ δέος δέϊος καὶ δήϊος· ἢ παρὰ τὸ δαίω, τὸ καίω, δάϊος καὶ δήϊος ὁ καυστικός· ἢ παρὰ τὸ δαίω, τὸ κόπτω, ὅθεν δαιτρός καὶ δήϊος, ὁ διακοπτικὸς ἀνθρώπων); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, delta, p. 492 (Δήϊος. πολέμιος. καὶ ἐπίθετον τοῦ πολέμου. παρὰ τὸ δέος, δέϊος καὶ δήϊος, ὁ δέος ἐμποιῶν)

Modern etymology

Unclear. Myc. da-i-qo-ta shows that the etymon is *dāhi-, which may be related to δαίομαι "to divide". Beekes, EDG assumes it is Pre-Greek

Persistence in Modern Greek

No

Entry By

Le Feuvre