κείρω
Word
Validation
No
Word-form
κόρη
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
korē
English translation (word)
girl
Transliteration (Etymon)
keirō
English translation (etymon)
to cut
Century
11 AD
Source
idem
Ref.
Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 338
Ed.
F.W. Sturz, Etymologicum Graecae linguae Gudianum et alia grammaticorum scripta e codicibus manuscriptis nunc primum edita, Leipzig: Weigel, 1818 (repr. Hildesheim: Olms, 1973): 229-584
Quotation
κόρη δὲ ἡ πάρθενος ἡ ὑγροφυὴς καὶ τρυφερὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ κορεῖν τὸ καλλωπίζειν, ὃ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ὀφθαλμοῦ εἴρηται· ἢ ἡ καθαρὰν καὶ ἄφθορον ἔχουσα τὴν ἡλικίαν· κορεῖν γὰρ τὸ καθαίρειν· ἔνθεν καὶ νεοκόρος· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κείρω, ἡ κειρομένη ἔτι νεάζουσα.
Translation (En)
And korē is the young girl, soft and tender, from koreîn "to clean, to embellish", which is said also of the eye. Or the one who keeps her youth pure and intact, because koreîn means "to purify, to clean", from where also neokoros "servant in the temple". Or from keirō "to cut", the one deflowered when she is still young
Parallels
Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 529 (idem)
Modern etymology
From κόρϝᾱ, Ionic κούρη. Probably belongs with κορέννυμι "to satiate", from a PIE root *kerh3- "to feed" (Beekes, EDG)
Persistence in Modern Greek
MG still has κόρη "(baby) girl"
Entry By
Le Feuvre
Comment
Derivational etymology, relying on the usual alternation e ~ o. It refers to the maiden. The virgin is the "uncut" one, but the negation is not included in the etymology, which rather selects the meaning "cut in her youth"