σκοπός

Validation

Yes

Word-form

σκότος

Transliteration (Word)

skotos

English translation (word)

darkness

Transliteration (Etymon)

skopos

English translation (etymon)

one who watches

Author

Heraclides Ponticus the Younger

Century

1 AD

Source

Orion

Ref.

Etymologicum, sigma, p. 147

Ed.

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

Quotation

Σκότος. ἀπὸ τοῦ σκιάζειν ὠνομᾶσθαι. οἱ δὲ φασὶν ὅτι σκοπὸς ἐστί. ὅτι δεῖ προσκοπεῖσθαι τὸν προερχόμενον ἐν αὐτῷ· οὕτως Ἡρακλείδης. ὁ δὲ Ἡρωδιανὸς παρὰ τὸ σκέθειν ἡμᾶς, ὅτι ἐπέχει πολλάκις προϊέναι

Translation (En)

Skotos "darkness" was named after skiazein "to shade". Others say it is from skopos "watcher", because the one who walks in darkness must watch before, this is what Heraclides says. But Herodian says it comes from the verb "to hold back" (skethein), because it often holds us back from moving forward

Comment

This etymology starts from a minimal pair and derives [skotos] from [skopos] through only one formal change of [p] into [t] (the position of stress is never taken into account in Greek etymologies). From the semantic point of view, the explanation given in Orion implies that the word is drawn either from the name of one of its effects on man, who must be watchful when he moves into darkness. However, this explanation may be added by the lexicographer and not attributable to Heraclides himself. If we understand σκοπός in the meaning "spy", it is readily understandable as spying expeditions were often night expeditions, so that there is a natural link between "darkness" and "spy". Another version of Orion (excerpta e cod. regio Paris. 2630, p. 289) erroneously attributed this etymology to Herodian, and Heraclides' name is lost (Σκότος· ἀπὸ τοῦ σκιάζειν ὠνόμασται. οἱ δὲ φασὶν, ὅτι σκοπός ἐστι· δεῖ προσκοπεῖσθαι τὸν προερχόμενον ἐν αὐτῷ. οὕτως Ἡρωδιανός. οἱ δὲ, παρὰ τὸ σχέθειν ἡμᾶς, ὅ ἐστιν ἐπισχεῖν, προϊέναι πολλάκις)

Parallels

Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 719 (idem); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, sigma, p. 1655 (Σκότος. ἀπὸ τοῦ σκιάζειν. Ἡρακλείδης δὲ ὁ Ποντικὸς ἀπὸ τοῦ προσκόπτειν τὸν πορευόμενον ἐν αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ Ἡρωδιανὸς παρὰ τὸ σχέθειν ἡμᾶς. ὅ ἐστιν ἐπισχεῖν ἡμᾶς πολλάκις προϊέναι) [the form προσκόπτειν "to stumble against, to knock at" instead of προσκοπεῖν "to watch carefully before" is a mistake]

Modern etymology

The word has a match in Germanic (Gothic skadus "shadow") and Celtic (Old Irish scáth "shadow"). PIE *skoto- (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

Σκότος is preserved as a learned word, next to the usual one σκοτάδι. The "lord of darkness", i.e., Satan is called "Άρχοντας του σκότους" (Triandafyllidis Dict. of MG).

Entry By

Le Feuvre