ἄω1

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No

Last modification

Sat, 08/19/2023 - 12:00

Word-form

ἀτμός

Transliteration (Word)

atmos

English translation (word)

steam

Transliteration (Etymon)

English translation (etymon)

to blow

Author

Etym. Genuinum

Century

9 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Etym. Genuinum, alpha 1361

Ed.

F. Lasserre and N. Livadaras, Etymologicum magnum genuinum. Symeonis etymologicum una cum magna grammatica. Etymologicum magnum auctum, vol. 2, Athens: Parnassos Literary Society, 1992

Quotation

Ἀτμός· ἡ ἀναπνοὴ τοῦ θερμοῦ ὕδατος· παρὰ τὸ ἄω, τὸ πνέω, ὁ παρακείμενος ἦσμαι ἀσμός καὶ ἀτμός

Translation (En)

Atmos "steam": the exhalation of hot water. From "to blow", the perfect <is> ēsmai, *asmos and atmos

Comment

Derivational etymology. The etymon is the thematic variant of ἄημι "to blow". The form is derived from the perfect, in a derivation in which the -m- of the 1sg ending is used to account for the -mo of the suffix. The etymology requires a formal change, from /s/ (of the perfect stem) to /t/: the latter may ultimately rely on the alternation between /s/ and dental plosives, like πείθομαι / πέπεισμαι, πιστός, provided there is a linguistic basis for it

Parallels

Eustathius, Comm. Il., vol. 2, p. 816-817 (Ὥσπερ δὲ ταῦτα ἐκ τοῦ ἀΰω, οὕτω καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ἄω ἀτμός καὶ ἀτμίς); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 164 (Ἀτμός: Ἡ ἀναπνοὴ τοῦ θερμοῦ ὕδατος· παρὰ τὸ ἄω, τὸ πνέω, ὁ παθητικὸς παρακείμενος, ἦσμαι, ἀσμὸς, καὶ ἀτμός); Etym. Symeonis, vol. 1, p. 286 (ἀτμός· ἡ <ἀναθυμίασις καὶ> ἀναπνοὴ τοῦ θερμοῦ· παρὰ τὸ ἄω, τὸ πνέω, ὁ <παθητικὸς> παρακείμενος ἦσμαι ἀσμός καὶ <τροπῇ τοῦ σ εἰς τ ἀτμός); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, alpha, p. 331 (Ἀτμός. ἀνάδοσις. παρὰ τὸ ἄω, τὸ πνέω, ὁ παρακείμενος ἦσμαι, ἀσμὸς καὶ ἀτμός)

Modern etymology

From ἀετμός, probably belongs with ἄημι (*h2weh1-) (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

MG still has ατμός as a learned word

Entry By

Le Feuvre