βαίνω

Validation

No

Last modification

Thu, 12/28/2023 - 13:05

Word-form

ἥβη

Transliteration (Word)

hēbē

English translation (word)

youth

Transliteration (Etymon)

bainō

English translation (etymon)

to go

Author

Etym. Gudianum

Century

11 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Etym. Gudianum, eta, p. 235

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)

Quotation

Ἥβη, ἡ ἡλικία καὶ ἡ νεότης, καὶ ἡ ἀκμὴ Ἡσιόδος, καὶ ἡ τῆς γνώσεως ἀκμὴ, καὶ ὄνομα θεᾶς, καὶ τὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μόριον. ἐκ τοῦ βῶ βῆ, καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ η ἥβη. βῶ δὲ σημαίνει τὸ πορεύομαι.

Translation (En)

Hēbē the youth and the young age, and the summit in Hesiod, the summit of knowledge, and the name of the goddess, and the human genitals. From * "to go", *, and by addition of /ē/, hēbē. And means "to go"

Comment

Derivational etymology. From the monosyllabic verb *βῶ, etymon of βαίνω, is derived a noun *βή, from which is then derived *ἅβη, then ἥβη. From the semantic point of view, youth is the "passing" one, that is, the one that does not last

Parallels

Etym. Gudianum, eta, p. 235 (Ἠβηδὸν, ἀθροὸν, ὅ ἐστι καθ’ ἡλικίαν, ἢ κατὰ νεότητα, ἥβη γὰρ ἡ νεότης. τὸ δὲ ἥβη παρὰ τὸ βῶ τὸ βαίνω, ἡβῶ καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἥβη. συντάσσεται δοτικῇ); ibid., p. 235 (ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἠβαιὸν, ἡ ἐπ’ ὀλίγον χρόνον οὖσα, ἀπὸ τοῦ βεβηκέναι ἅβη καὶ ἥβη); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 417 (Ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ βεβηκέναι, ἄβη καὶ ἥβη. Ἀπὸ τοῦ βῶ, τὸ πορεύομαι, βῆ καὶ ἥβη); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, eta, p. 971 (ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ βεβηκέναι ἅβη καὶ ἥβη); Lexicon αἱμωδεῖν, eta 3 (ἡβηδόν […] τὸ δὲ ἥβη παρὰ τὸ βῶ, τὸ βαίνω, ἡβῶ καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἥβη. συντάσσεται μετὰ δοτικῆς)

Modern etymology

Probably cognate with Lith. jėgà "strength", from PIE *yēgweh2. Forms like ἅγα must be hyperdoricisms or hyperaeolicisms (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

MG still has ήβη "adolescence" and "pubes"

Entry By

Le Feuvre