θέρω

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Word-form

θοῦρος

Transliteration (Word)

thouros

English translation (word)

impetuous

Transliteration (Etymon)

therō

English translation (etymon)

to heat

Author

Etym. Magnum

Century

12 AD

Source

idem

Ref.

Etym. Magnum, p. 453

Ed.

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

Quotation

Θοῦρος: Ὁ ὁρμητικὸς, ὁ πολεμιστής· καὶ θοῦρον, τὸν πηδητικὸν καὶ ταχύν· οἱονεὶ ὁ θοῶς ὀρούων, ἢ ὁ κούφως ὀρούων. Παρὰ τὸ θέρω, τὸ θερμαίνω, θόρος καὶ θοῦρος· ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῆς τοῦ πυρὸς ὁρμῆς· καὶ θορεῖν, τὸ πηδᾶν, παρὰ τὸ αὐτό. Ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ θέω ῥήματος· ὅθεν καὶ τὸ θεῖον τὴν ἀρχὴν εἴληφεν· ὥστε τὴν γεννητικὴν τοῦ πυρὸς οὐσίαν ἀπὸ τοῦ θέω ῥήματος ὀνομάσαι τοὺς ἀρχαίους. Ταύτῃ γοῦν τοὺς μὲν ταχεῖς, θερμοὺς λέγουσι· τοὺς δὲ βραδεῖς, ψυχρούς. Ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ θοῦρος γίνεται θορῶ, τὸ ὁρμῶ καὶ πηδῶ. 

Translation (En)

Thouros "impetuous". The rushing one, the warlike one; and thoron, the leaping and quick one; as though it were the "quickly rushing" (thouros orouōn), or the lightly rushing. Or from therō "to heat up", *thoros and thouros, by metaphor from the fire's rush. And thorein "to leap", comes form the same verb. Or from the verb theō "to run", from which theios "divine", too, took its beginning, so that the ancients named the body that produces fire after the verb "to run". This is why those who are quick are said to be hot and those who are slow, cold. And from thouros comes thorô "to rush forward" and "to leap"

Comment

Derivational etymology relying on the widespread association between cold and absence of motion or slow motion, as opposed to warmth and motion. The etymologist adds that it is a metaphor after the characteristics of fire. Therefore, since the etymon θέρω provides the /r/, θοῦρος was derived from it, by a play on the alternation between e grade and o grade (*θόρος provided as an intermediate step in the derivation), and the lemma is obtained by addition of /u/.

Parallels

Schol. Oppinaum, Hal. 2. 667 (θοῦρος· ὁρμητικὸς, πολεμιστής· καὶ θοῦρον τὸν πηδητικὸν καὶ ταχὺν, οἱονεὶ θοῶς <ὀ>ρούων· παρὰ τὸ θέρω τὸ θερμαίνω θόρος καὶ θοῦρος ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῆς τοῦ πυρὸς ὁρμῆς, καὶ θορεῖν τὸ πηδᾷν παρὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ· ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ θέω τοῦ ῥήματος, ὅθεν καὶ τὸ θεῖον καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν εἴληφεν, ὥστε τὴν γεννητικὴν τοῦ πυρὸς οὐσίαν ἀπὸ τοῦ θέω ῥήματος ὀνομάσαι τοὺς ἀρχαίους· ταύτῃ τοὺς μὲν ταχεῖς θερμοὺς λέγουσι, τοὺς δὲ ψυχροὺς βραδεῖς, ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ θοῦρος γίνεται θορῶ τὸ ὁρμῶ καὶ πηδῶ); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, theta, p. 1048 ([Θοῦρος. ὁρμητικός. πολεμικώτατος. οἱονεὶ ὁ θοῶς ὀρούων. ἢ παρὰ τὸ θέρω, τὸ θερμαίνω, γίνεται θόρος καὶ θοῦρος. ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῆς τοῦ πυρὸς ὁρμῆς. καὶ θορεῖν τὸ πηδᾷν.]); Schol. Sophoclem, Aj. 212b (θούριος, ὁρμητικὸς ὁ πολεμιστής, οἱονεὶ ὁ θοῶς ὀρούων ἢ παρὰ τὸ θέρω τὸ θερμαίνω γίνεται θερὸς καὶ τοῦ ῥοῦ. ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῆς τοῦ πυρὸς ὁρμῆς. καὶ θορεῖν τὸ πηδᾶν. ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ θροεῖν ἐπιτήδεια)

Modern etymology

Older *θόρϝος. Belongs with θρώσκω, ἔθορον "to leap". Cognate with OIr. -dair "to leap upon", from PIE *dherh3- "to jump" (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

No. MG still has the derived adjective θούριος "warlike" as a learned word

Entry By

Le Feuvre