μή + μένω
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
Μήνη. ἡ σελήνη. ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ μένειν ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ, ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν μειοῦσθαι, ποτὲ δὲ αὔξεσθαι
Translation (En)
Mēnē, the "moon", is called thus from the fact that it does not stay (mē menein) in the same condition, but now it diminishes, now it grows.
Parallels
Epimerismi homerici in Il. 1.1. (ἀπὸ γοῦν τοῦ μένω, […] ἐκ τούτου καὶ μήνη, ἡ σελήνη, κατ’ εὐφημισμόν· ἡ ἀεὶ ἐν κινήσει οὖσα); Joannes Mauropus, Etymologica nominum 32-33 (ἣν μηδαμοῦ σῴζουσαν εἶδος ἓν μένον | μήνην καλοῦσιν· ἀστατεῖ γὰρ τὴν θέαν); Etym. Gudianum, mu p. 391 (Μήνη, ἡ σελήνη, ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ μένειν ἐν ταὐτῷ, ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν μειοῦσθαι ποτὲ δὲ αὐξάνεσθαι, ὡς ἐκλείπειν· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἐλαττοῦσθαι. ἐξ οὗ καὶ σκοτομήνη); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 583 (ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ μένειν ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ, ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν μειοῦσθαι, ποτὲ δὲ αὔξεσθαι)
Comment
The etymology starts from a negated verb, with the negation μή yielding the first syllable of the word. This implιes a haplology in the etymon [mēmen] > [mēn], which remains implicit. Alternatively, it could be an etymology a contrario (enantiosemy), that is, the negation would not be included in the etymon, which would be only [men], yielding [mēn] through the familiar alternation between long and short vowel. However, the latter hypothesis is less likely, for Orion does not have such etymologies (which are well attested later in Byzantine Etymologica), whereas he has several etymologies involving the negation μή for words with initial [m] (e.g. μῖσος· παρὰ τὸ μὴ ἶσον εἶναι)