ἀναθρέω + ὀράω
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Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
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Quotation
σημαίνει τοῦτο τὸ ὄνομα ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι τὰ μὲν ἄλλα θηρία ὧν ὁρᾷ οὐδὲν ἐπισκοπεῖ οὐδὲ ἀναλογίζεται οὐδὲ ἀναθρεῖ, ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος ἅμα ἑώρακεν – τοῦτο δ' ἐστὶ ὄπωπε – καὶ ἀναθρεῖ καὶ λογίζεται τοῦτο ὃ ὄπωπεν. ἐντεῦθεν δὴ μόνον τῶν θηρίων ὀρθῶς ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἄνθρωπος ὠνομάσθη, ἀναθρῶν ἃ ὄπωπε
Translation (En)
The name "man" (ἄνθρωπος) indicates that the other animals do not examine, or consider, or "look up at" (ἀναθρεῖ) any of the things that they see, but man has no sooner seen - that is ὄπωπε ("he has seen")- than he looks up at and considers that which he has seen. Therefore of all the animals man alone is rightly called man (ἄνθρωπος) because he "looks up at" (ἀναθρεῖ) what "he has seen" (ὄπωπε) (Transl. by H. N. Fowler)
Parallels
Eusebius, Praeparatio evangelica 11.6.16.4 (ὁ δὲ Πλάτων τὸν ἄνθρωπον τῇ Ἑλλήνων φωνῇ παρὰ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν φησι κεκλῆσθαι λέγων· “Ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος ἅμα ἑώρακε, τοῦτο δέ ἐστιν ὄπωπε, καὶ ἀναθρεῖ καὶ λογίζεται τοῦτο ὃ ὄπωπεν, ἵνα ᾖ ἀναθρῶν ἃ ὄπωπε.”); Syriani, Sopatri et Marcellini Scholia Ad Hermogenis Status, Scholia ad Hermogenis librum περὶ στάσεων 4.199.23 (Τῶν ὀνομάτων τὰ μὲν προσηγορικὰ καὶ μόνως ἐστὶν, ὡς λίθοι καὶ κίονες, τὰ δὲ συμβαίνουσαν ἔχει τὴν προσηγορίαν τῷ ὑποκειμένῳ πράγματι· ὡς ἄνθρωπός τε ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν; Proclus, In Platonis Cratylum commentaria 16.42: πρὸς δὲ τὸ δεύτερον ὅτι οὐδὲν κωλύει κατ' ἄλλο καὶ ἄλλο δηλοῦν τὰ διάφορα ὀνόματα τὸ αὐτό, οἷον <μέροψ> καὶ <ἄνθρωπος>, κατὰ μὲν τὸ μεμερισμένην ἔχειν ζωὴν <μέροψ>, κατὰ δὲ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν <ἄνθρωπος>; Ammonius, In Porphyrii isagogen sive quinque voces 57.14-17 (Ἡ μὲν οὖν ὑπογραφὴ λαμβάνεται ἢ ἐξ ἐτυμολογίας ἢ ἐκ τῆς τῶν συμβεβηκότων συνδρομῆς, ἣ καὶ κυρίως ὑπογραφὴ λέγεται. ἐξ ἐτυμολογίας μὲν οἷον ‘ἄνθρωπός ἐστι τὸ δυνάμενον ἄνω ἀθρεῖν ἢ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν ἢ τὸ ἄνωθεν ἔχον τοὺς ὦπας’); Ammonius In Aristotelis librum de interpretatione commentarius 38.6-10 (τὸν αὐτὸν καὶ ἐνταῦθα τρόπον οὐδὲν κωλύει τὴν αὐτὴν φύσιν δι' ἄλλων καὶ ἄλλων ὀνομάζεσθαι συλλαβῶν, μιᾶς καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς οὐσίας κατ' ἄλλην καὶ ἄλλην ἔννοιαν ἐκ πασῶν σημαινομένης, ὥσπερ τὸ ἄνθρωπος ὄνομα καὶ τὸ μέροψ καὶ τὸ βροτὸς σημαίνει ταὐτόν, ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν καθ' ὃ ἀναθρεῖ ἃ ὄπωπε); Simplicius, In Aristotelis quattuor libros de caelo commentaria 7.281.19-21 (ὡς καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος κατὰ τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τὸ λογιζόμενον ἄνθρωπος λέγεται διὰ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν, ἃ ὄπωπεν, καὶ τὰ πολλὰ εἰς ἓν συνάγειν); Elias, In Porphyrii isagogen 2.6-7 (ἀνθρώπου δὲ ἀγαθὸν τὸ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν· μόνος γὰρ τῶν ζῴων ἄνθρωπος ἀναμιμνήσκεται τῶν ἀλόγων μνήμην ἐχόντων μόνον,…); David, Prolegomena philosophiae 23.26-28 (καὶ γὰρ οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχεν ἐπετίθεσαν οἱ ἀρχαῖοι τὸ ὄνομα, ἀλλ' ἁρμοζόντως τῷ ὑποκειμένῳ πράγματι, οἷον ἄνθρωπος λέγεται παρὰ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν καὶ ἀναλογίζεσθα ἃ ὄπωπε…); Damascius, De principiis 1.231.16 (…καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν); Anastasius, Viae dux 2.4.124 (…λέγεται ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν τὴν ὦπα εἴρηται *ἄνωθρώοπος); Id. 2.8.95 (Ὁμοίως καὶ τὸ ἄνθρωπος οὐκ αὐτὴν τὴν φύσιν δηλοῖ, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν τὴν ὦπα, τουτέστιν ἄνω ὁρᾶν τὴν τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἡμῶν ἐνέργειαν); Leo, De natura hominum 1.5-6 (παρὰ τὸ ἀθρεῖν καὶ λογίζεσθαι, ἅπερ ὄπωπε, τουτέστιν ἅπερ βλέπει); Choeroboscos, Epimerismi in Psalmos, p. 194 (Ἀνθρώπων παρὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν τὸν ὦπα, ἢ αἴρειν τὸν ὀφθαλμόν); Joannes Mauropus, Etymologica nominum 129 (ἄνθρωπον… σῴζει δ’ ἀναθρῶν ὧν ὄπωπε τοὺς τύπους); Scholia Londinensia ad Artem Grammaticam Dionisii Thracis, p. 470 (οἷον ὅτι ἄνθρωπος λέγεται παρὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν ἤγουν βλέπειν).
Lexicographical tradition: Orion, Etymologicum, alpha, p. 16 (<Ἄνθρωπος>, κατὰ Πλάτωνα παρὰ τὸ ἀθρεῖν καὶ νοεῖν ἃ δὴ ὄπωπε καὶ εἶδε); Orion, Etymologicum, add. p. 174 (<Ἄνθρωπος> λέγεται διὰ τὰ ἄνω θρεῖν, ἤγουν ὁρᾶν); Etym. Genuinum, alpha 885 [ad Plat. Cratyl. 399 c] (<Ἄνθρωπος> · παρὰ τὸ ἄνω †θρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν, ἤγουν ἀναλογίζεσθαι ἃ εἶδεν καὶ ἤκουσεν, […] οἱ δὲ παρὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν, ἤγουν ἄνω βλέπειν); Etym. Gudianum, alpha, p. 147 (Ἄνθρωπος>· παρὰ τὸ ἄνω <ἀ>θρεῖν τὰς ὦπας, ἤγουν ἄνω ὁρᾶν τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς· ὦπες γὰρ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ λέγονται […] παρὰ τὸ ἀνακλῶ<ν>τα τὴν ὄψιν ἄνω ἀθρεῖν); Etym. Gudianum, alpha, p. 148 (<Ἄνθρωπος>· παρὰ τὸ ἄνω <ἀ>θρεῖν τὴν ὦπα, ἤγουν ἄνω θεωρεῖν τὸ βλέμμα· [<οἷον ἀνώ>θρωπος]); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 109.18 (<Ἄνθρωπος>: Παρὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν, ἤγουν ἄνω βλέπειν· μόνος γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων ζῴων ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἄνω βλέπει. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν, ἤγουν ἀναλογίζεσθαι ἃ εἶδε καὶ ἤκουσε); Ps-Zonaras, Lexicon, epsilon 727 (διὰ τὸ ἄνω θρεῖν τὴν ὦπα); Etym. Symeonis, 1, p. 62 (<ἄνθρωπος>· παρὰ τὸ ἀναθρεῖν ἃ ὄπωπεν, ἤγουν ἀναλογίζεσθαι ἃ εἶδε καὶ ἤκουσε […]. οἱ δὲ παρὰ τὸ ἄνω ἀθρεῖν, ἤγουν βλέπειν <ἄνω>)
Comment
This is the “classical” etymology for human being, which passed on to next generations of scholars, as it is obvious in the parallel texts. The word ἄνθρωπος is treated as a compound one, consisting of two verbs, with which a special attribute of mankind is described by Plato. Both verbs ἀναθρέω and ὄπωπα (past perfect of horaō) have vocal similarities with the word and their combination can depict a mental activity which is an exclusive feature of human beings. This specific etymology occurs in the texts of Christian authors but also in several Neoplatonic commentators from Ammonius onwards at the School of Alexandria and, given that Ammonius studied in Athens where Syrianus had been the teacher of Proclus, who was the teacher of Ammonius and the latter became the teacher of Simplicius, Philoponus and Elias, we can have a picture of the possible transmission of the etymology from Athens to Alexandria until the 6th cent. AD. Despite the fact that Ammonius also gives two more etymologies for ἄνθρωπος (see the respective etymologies), the other two were obviously not so widespread. However, later in the lexicographical tradition we also find the etymologies “ἄνω + θρεῖν” and “ἄνω + ὦπα”, the latter given by Ammonius (see the respective etymology). Note that the verb θρεῖν is only found in lexicographical tradition (with the exception of Etym. Gud., epsilon 573 : Ἐχθρός· παρὰ τὸ ἔχεσθαι τοῦ θρεῖν ἤτοι συλλαλεῖν) and almost solely connected with the Cratylian etymology of anthropos. This verb may be considered as an etymological forgery. Yet Eustathius considers that the classical ἀθρεῖν (used by Plato in the compound ἀν-αθρεῖν) stems from θρεῖν by stretching (Eust. Comm. in Od. 2, 215 : οὕτω καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ θεωρεῖν τὸ θρεῖν, καὶ κατ’ ἐπίτασιν ἀθρεῖν).