ἀραιός + ἴχνος
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
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Ed.
Quotation
ἀράχνη παρὰ τὸ ἀηραριχᾶσθαι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν, ἥγουν λεπτά
Translation (En)
"Spider" (arakhnē) comes from anarrikhâsthai "to climb" (the form in Orion is altered), or from the fact that it has thin, that is, slender, footsteps
Parallels
Etym. Genuinum, alpha 1006 (Ἀράχνη· Ἡσίοδος "ἀερσιπότητος ἀράχνης", ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ποδῶν ἀραιότητος, ἀραιά ἴχνη ἔχων); Choeroboscus, Epimerismi in Psalmos, p. 143 (ἀράχνη παρὰ τὸ ἀναριχᾶσθαι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν, ἥγουν λεπτά); ibid., p. 167 (ἀράχνη παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν, ἡ (ἤτοι) ἀσθενῆ· ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἰς τὸν ἀέρα αἴρειν τὰ ἴχνη); Suda, alpha 3749 (παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν); Etym. Gudianum Additamenta, alpha, p. 183 (Ἀράχνη· παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν, ὅ ἐστι λεπτὰ καὶ ἀσθενῆ· ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἰς τὸν ἀέρα αἴρειν τὰ ἴχνη); Joannes Mauropus, Etymologica nominum 370 ( Ἴχνη δ’ ἀραιὰ τοὺς ἀράχνας ἐκφέρει); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 134-135 (Ἀράχνης: Παρὰ τὸ ἀναρριχᾶσθαι· ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν, ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ποδῶν ἀραιότητος. Ἡσίοδος, ‘Ἀερσιπότητος ἀράχνης’. Ἀρσενικῶς λέγεται τὸ ζῷον· ἀράχνη δὲ, τὸ λεπτότατον ὕφασμα τοῦ ἀράχνου· ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἰς τὸν ἀέρα τατον ὕφασμα τοῦ ἀράχνου· ἢ παρὰ τὸ εἰς τὸν ἀέρα αἴρειν τὰ ἴχνη); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, alpha, p. 286 (Ἀράχνης. τὸ ζωΰφιον. ἀράχνη δὲ θηλυκῶς τὸ ὕφασμα. παρὰ τὸ ἀραιὰ ἴχνη ἔχειν λέγεται ἀράχνης).
Comment
The word is parsed as a compound Adj-N, of a common type. Notice that it involves as its second element an inflected form, ἴχνη, plural of ἴχνος, as this provides the ending -χνη. This is a descriptive etymology alluding to the fact that spiders leave almost no trace behind, which seems to have been proverbial in Greek: see Diodorus, Commentary in Psalmos (in catenas), Ps. 36, verse 10 ἀράχνης δίκην ἐξαίφνης ἠφανίσθησαν ὥστε μηδὲ ἴχνος αὐτῶν καταλειφθῆναι "they disappeared suddenly like spiders, leaving not even a footstep behind". The same etymology was provided for the derivative ἀράχνιον (see Parallels)