κνάω
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
Σημείωσαι δὲ ὅτι πρωτότυπον τῆς κονίας ἡ κόνις. αὐτὴ δὲ γίνεται ἀπὸ τοῦ κνῶ κατὰ Ἡρῳδιανόν. ἵνα ᾖ κνίς. καὶ ἐπεὶ οὐδέ ποτε λέξις Ἑλληνικὴ μονοσύλλαβος βραχύνεται δίχα τοῦ τίς, πλεονάζει τὸ ο καὶ γίνεται κόνις
Translation (En)
Note that the prototype of konia "dust" is konis "dust". The latter comes from knō "to scrape", according to Herodian, resulting in *knis. And since no Greek monosyllabic word has a short /I/ except tis "who", the /o/ is added, and it becomes konis.
Parallels
Orion, Etymologicum, kappa, p. 89 (Κόνις. κονῶ δηλοῦν τὸ διαφθεῖραι καὶ κατακόπτειν. κνὶς, ὄνομα, ἡ κατακεκομμένη γῆ, καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ο, κόνις. δηλοῖ δὲ τὴν εἰς λεπτομερῆ οὐσίαν χωρήσασαν γῆν. ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῶν ξυσμάτων. Ἡρωδιανός); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, kappa 19 ((s.v. κονίη) ἐκ τοῦ κνῶ οὖν, τὸ διακόπτω, γίνεται κνίς καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ο κόνις, ἡ εἰς μικρὰ κεκομμένη καὶ τετραμμένη γῆ); ibid., kappa 138 (καὶ ἡ κόνις δὲ ἐκ τοῦ κνῶ); Choeroboscus, Epimerismi in Psalmos, p. 179 (Ἠκονημένον, […] τοῦτο παρὰ τὸ κονῶ, τὸ φθείρω, καὶ λεπτύνω, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κόνις); Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 337 (Κόνις, παρὰ τὸ καίνω τὸ κόπτω καὶ διφθείρω, ἡ εἰς μικρὰ κεκομμένη γῆ· δηλοῖ γὰρ τὴν εἰς λεπτομερῆ οὐσίαν χωρήσασαν γῆν, ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῶν ξυσμάτων· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κνῶ κνίς· καὶ ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἐδύνατο μονοσύλλαβον ὄνομα βραχυκαταλήγειν πλεονάζει τὸ ο, καὶ γίνεται κόνις); Eustathius, Comm. Il., vol. 4, p. 697 (διὸ καὶ κόνις ἡ οὕτω κνωμένη γῆ); Eustahius, Comm. Od., vol. 1, p. 271 (ἡ δὲ χρῆσις τοῦ κνῶ καὶ ἐν Ἰλιάδι ἐν τῷ, ‘κνῆ τυρόν’. ὅ ἐστιν ἔκοψεν. ἀφ’ οὗ ὡς ἐῤῥέθη, καὶ ἡ κόνις); ibid., vol. 2, p. 54 (παράγει δὲ τὸ τοιοῦτον κνύω ἐκ τοῦ κνῶ, ἐξ οὗ καὶ ἡ κόνις, ὡς ἀλλαχοῦ φαίνεται); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 528 (Κονία: Κόνις, μάχη. Παρὰ τὸ κονῶ, κόνις κόνιος, καὶ κονία, ὡς Κύπρος Κύπριος, Κυπρία. Ἢ ἀπὸ τῆς κινήσεως, κίνις τὶς οὖσα καὶ κόνις. Ἢ ἐκ τοῦ καίνω, τὸ κόπτω καὶ διαφθείρω, ἡ εἰς μικρὰ κεκομμένη γῆ καὶ τετμημένη· δηλοῖ γὰρ τὴν εἰς λεπτομερῆ οὐσίαν χωρήσασαν γῆν. Ἢ ἐκ τοῦ καίνω γίνεται κατὰ συγκοπὴν κνῶ, τὸ ξύω· ὅθεν καὶ κνῆμι παράγωγον· ἐξ οὗ τὸ, ‘κνῆ τυρόν’. Ἐκ τοῦ κνῶ οὖν, τὸ διακόπτω, γίνεται κνίς· καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ο, κόνις· ἀπὸ μεταφορᾶς τῶν ξυσμάτων)
Comment
Derivational causal etymology. Dust is the result of scraping. The addition of /o/ is justified on morphological grounds, and does not affect the meaning of the word. This etymology sometimes appears with καίνω "to kill" as the etymon, for according to Herodian καίνω is the etymon of κνάω (καίνω → κνάω → *κνίς → κόνις, cf. κόνις / καίνω). Providing as the etymon of a word what is in fact the etymon of the etymon is rather frequent in etymological works. Sometimes the /o/ is added already to the verb, yielding a chain καίνω → κνάω → *κονῶ → κόνις (e.g. Choeroboscus)