logo etygram

EtygramEtymologies Grecques Antiques et Médiévales
Ancient and Medieval Greek Etymologies

νεβρός

Word

νεβρός

Validation

No

Last modification

Sat, 08/15/2026 - 10:05

Word-form

νεβροί

Word-lemma

LSJ

Etymon-lemma

LSJ-1 .

LSJ-2

Transliteration (Word)

nebros

English translation (word)

fawn

Transliteration (Etymon)

nē- + poreuō

English translation (etymon)

not + to go

Author

Scholia vetera in Homerum

Source

idem

Ref.

A Scholion Il. 22.1b

Ed.

H. Erbse, Scholia Graeca in Homeri Iliadem (scholia vetera), vols. 1-5, 7, Berlin: De Gruyter, 1:1969; 2:1971; 3:1974; 4:1975; 5:1977; 7:1988

Quotation

νεβροί: οἱ νεωστὶ ἐπὶ βορὰν ἰόντες· ἢ νήποροι, οἱ μηδέπω πορεύεσθαι δυνάμενοι.

Translation (En)

Nebroi "fawns": the ones that recently go out for food (boran). Or *nēporoi, the ones not yet (mēdepō) able to walk (poreuesthai)

Comment

Compositional etymology. The fawn is etymologized as "not walking". The variant νε- of the privative prefix νη- is also found in another etymology of νεβρός (see νεβρός / νη- + βορά). This etymology is found in the A and bT scholia, which means that it is old enough

Parallels

D Schol. Il. 4.243 (οϊ νεωστὶ ἐπὶ βορὰν ἐληλυθότες, ἢ νεπόροι οἱ μηδέπω πορεύεσθαι δυνάμενοι); Geneva Schol. Il. 4.243 (νεβροὶ δὲ οἱονεὶ νεωστὶ ἐπὶ βορὰν ἰόντες, ἢ νεπόροι οἱ μήπω πορεύεσθαι δυνάμενοι); Eustathius, Comm. Od., vol. 1, p. 168 (νεβροῖς. ὧν ἐτυμολογία, ἐκ τοῦ, νέον βορᾶς ἢ πορείας ἄρχεσθαι. ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἐστερῆσθαι βορᾶς ἔτι διὰ τὸ θηλάζειν. ἢ καὶ παρὰ τὸ μήπω ἔχειν πορεύεσθαι); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 599 (Νεβροί: Ἐλάφων γεννήματα· οἱ νεωστὶ ἐπὶ βορὰν ἐλθόντες ἢ ἰόντες· ἢ παρὰ τὸ νεωστὶ πρὸς πορείαν ἰέναι· ἢ νέποροι, οἱ μηδέπω πορεύεσθαι δυνάμενοι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ΝΕ στερητικὸν καὶ τὸ βορὰ, τὸ ἐστερημένον τῆς βορᾶς, ὅ ἐστι τῆς τροφῆς)