καλέω

Word

Validation

Yes

Word-form

κλαίω

Word-lemma

LSJ

Etymon-lemma

LSJ

Transliteration (Word)

klaiō

English translation (word)

to cry, to lament

Transliteration (Etymon)

kaleō

English translation (etymon)

to call

Author

Philoxenus

Century

1 BC

Reference

Fr. 114a

Edition

C. Theodoridis, Die Fragmente des Grammatikers Philoxenos [Sammlung griechischer und lateinischer Grammatiker (SGLG) 2. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1976

Source

Orion

Ref.

Etymologicum, kappa, p. 84

Ed.

F. Sturz, Orionis Thebani etymologicon, Leipzig: Weigel, 1820

Quotation

κλαίω· παρὰ τὸ καλῶ κλῶ κλαίω· ἐπικαλοῦνται γὰρ τοὺς ἀποθανόντας οἱ κλαίοντες, οἷον „ᾤμωξεν δ’ ἄρ’ ἔπειτα, φίλον δ’ ὀνόμηνεν ἑταῖρον“ (Κ 522)

Translation (En)

Klaiō "to cry" : it comes from kaleō "to call", whence klō and klaiō; because those who lament call aloud the dead, as in "and then he moaned and called his comrade" (Il. 10.522)

Comment

This etymology derives the name of the process from a process which is culturally associated with it. It starts from the meaning κλαίω "to lament", especially in a funerary context, not from the basic meaning "to cry". Ritual mourning implied calling the name of the deceased, which made it possible to derive κλαίω from a syncopated form of καλῶ, the monosyllabic κλῶ. The two etymologies κλαίω / κλάω and κλαίω / καλέω are attributed to Philoxenus by Orion (but see Theodoridis 1976, p. 144 "nescio an ambo Philoxeni sint"). Although we have in Orion only membra disjecta, this may be an instance of complementary etymologies, since the Greeks made a difference between intransitive κλαίω "to weep, to cry" and transitive κλαίω "to lament": the complete analysis may have been "κλαίω comes from κλάω "to break" when it means "to cry", because the human voice is broken when one cries; and it comes from καλῶ, syncopated κλῶ, when it means "to lament", because those who lament call aloud the dead."

Parallels

Orion, Etymologicum, kappa, p. 84 (idem); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, kappa 25 (κλαίω (Β 263): γίνεται διχῶς· 1) ἐκ τοῦ κλῶ, τὸ κλάνω· κλᾶται γὰρ ἡ φωνὴ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐν τῷ κλαίειν· 2) καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ κλ⸤ῶ, τοῦ⸥ σημαίνοντος τὸ καλῶ, γίνεται κλαίω· εἰώθασι γὰρ ⸤οἱ ἄνθρωποι⸥ καλεῖν τοὺς ἀποθανόντας ἐν τῷ κλα⸤ίειν καὶ θρηνεῖν⸥); ibid., kappa 45 ([κλαίω (Γ 176): γίνεται διχῶς]. ἐκ τοῦ καλῶ καθ’ ὑπερβιβασμὸν κλάω· εἰώθασι γὰρ οἱ κ[λαίοντες ἀνα]καλεῖν τοὺς τεθνεῶτας. ἢ παρὰ τὸ κλῶ, τὸ [κλάνω]· κλᾶται γὰρ ἡ φωνὴ ἐ[ν] τῷ κλαίειν); Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 324 (Κλαίω, κλῶ τὸ κλάνω γίνεται κατὰ παραγωγὴν κλαίω· κλᾶται γὰρ ἡ τῶν ἀνθρώπων φωνή, ἐκ τοῦ κλαίειν, καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ τοῦτο πάσχουσα· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κλῶ τὸ καλῶ γίνεται κλαίω· ἐπικαλοῦνται γὰρ τοὺς ἀποθανόντας οἱ κλαίοντες, οἷον· ὠμωξέν τ’ ἄρ’ ἔπειτα, φίλον τ’ ὀνόμῃνεν ἑταῖρον); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 516 (Κλῶ: Σημαίνει πέντε· τὸ καλῶ, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κλῆρος· τὸ ἐπαινῶ, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κλεῖ, τὸ ἐπαινεῖ· τὸ κλάνω, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κλαίω· κλῶ, τὸ φωνῶ, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κατὰ παραγωγὴν, κλύω· κλῶ, τὸ ἐμποδίζω, ἐξ οὗ καὶ κλᾶν, τὸ ἐμποδίζειν); ibid. p. 517; Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, kappa, p. 1221 (Κλαίω. τὸ θρηνῶ. κλῶ, τὸ κλαύω. καὶ γίνεται κατὰ παραγωγὴν κλαίω. κλᾶται γὰρ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ φωνὴ, καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ τοῦτο πάσχουσα. ἢ παρὰ τὸ καλῶ, κλῶ, κλαίω. ἐπικαλοῦνται γὰρ τοὺς ἀποθανόντας οἱ κλαίοντες)

Modern etymology

Unclear. The root in Greek is *klau-, but no good cognate in IE languages is known (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

Κλαίω is still used in Modern Greek with the meanings: 1. 'to cry out of grief', 2. (esp. in the middle voice) to complain without having serious reasons, 3. 'to mourn, feel sad about something', 4. 'to shed tears in general' (e.g., when peeling onions).

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