δέχομαι

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Mon, 02/12/2024 - 19:25

Word-form

ἑκυρός

Transliteration (Word)

hekuros

English translation (word)

father-in-law

Transliteration (Etymon)

dekhomai

English translation (etymon)

to receive

Author

Epimerismi homerici

Century

9 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, epsilon 106

Ed.

A.R. Dyck, Epimerismi Homerici: Pars altera. Lexicon αἱμωδεῖν [Sammlung griechischer und lateinischer Grammatiker (SGLG) 5.2] Berlin - New York: De Gruyter, 1995

Quotation

ἑκυρός (Γ 172): ἐτυμολογεῖται παρὰ τὸ πρὸς ἑαυτὸν τὴν νύμφην ἄγειν· γίνεται ἐκ τοῦ δέχω δεχύω δεχυρός, ὡς ἴσχω ἰσχύω ἰσχυρός καὶ ἀποβολῇ τοῦ δ καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ χ εἰς κ ἑκυρός. ἢ παρὰ τὸ κύρω, τὸ ἐπιτυγχάνω, κυρός καὶ ἑκυρός.

Translation (En)

Hekuros "father-in-law": it is etymologized after the fact that he leads the bride toward himself. And it comes from dekhō "to receive", *dekhuō *dekhuros, as iskhō "to hold" iskhuō "to be strong" iskhuros "strong", and by dropping of the /d/ and change of the /kh/ into /k/, hekuros. Or from kurō "to meet, to fall upon", *kuros and hekuros.

Comment

Derivational etymology requiring several formal changes (loss of a consonant, change of another) and a fanciful derivation δέχομαι → δεχύω, after the alleged parallel of ἴσχω / ἰσχύω (a better model would have been ἄνω / ἀνύω "to accomplish"). Since the bride will live in her husband's house, and the latter lives in his father's house, the father-in-law is the head of the οἶκος and he can be said to "receive" the bride, in a functional etymology.

Parallels

Etym. Gudianum, epsilon, p. 449 (idem); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 324-325 (Ἑκυρός: […] Εἴρηται δὲ ἑκυρὸς παρὰ τὸ εἰς ἑαυτὸν τὴν κόρην ἄγειν. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ δέχω, δεχυρός· καὶ ἀποβολῇ τοῦ δ, καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ χ εἰς κ, ἑκυρός. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ κύρω, τὸ ἐπιτυγχάνω, κυρὸς, καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ε, ἑκυρός); Etym. Symeonis, epsilon 265 (Ἑκυρός· ὁ πενθερός· εἴρηται δὲ οὕτως παρὰ τὸ εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἄγειν τὴν κόρην· ἢ παρὰ τὸ δέχω δεχυρός, καὶ ἀποβολῇ τοῦ δ καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ χ εἰς κ ἑκυρός. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ κύρω, τὸ ἐπιτυγχάνω, κυρός καὶ ἑκυρός, πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ε); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, epsilon, p. 654 (idem)

Modern etymology

Old word inherited from PIE *swek̑uro-, matching Ved. śváśura-, Lat. socer, OHG swehur (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

No

Entry By

Le Feuvre