ἔρδω
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Reference
Edition
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
Ἄρσην· ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄρδω καὶ μέλλοντος τοῦ ἄρσω· ὁ ἄρδων τὴν θήλειαν τῇ γονῇ. Ἐπαφρόδιτος δὲ παρὰ τὸ ἔρσαι· πρακτικὸς γὰρ λέγεται ὁ ἄρσην κατὰ διάλεκτον, καὶ ἐτυμολογεῖται παρὰ τὸ ἔρδω, ἵν’ ᾖ ὁ πρακτικός. οὕτω<ς> Ἡρωδιανὸς ἐν τῷ Περὶ γάμου καὶ συμβιώσεως
Translation (En)
Arsēn "male": from ardō "to irrigate" and the future arsō, he who irrigates the female for generation. But Epaphroditus says it comes from ersai (aorist infinitive of erdō "to do"), because the male is called "active" dialectally, and its etymology is erdō, so that it means "the active one". This is what Herodian says in the Peri gamou kai symbiōseōs
Parallels
Ps.-Herodian, Peri gamou kai symbiōseōs (ap. Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 149), Lentz III/2, p. 904 (ἄρσην· παρὰ τὸ ἄρδω τὸ ποτίζω καὶ τὸ μετεγχέω· ὁ γὰρ ἀνὴρ τῇ γυναικὶ ἐπαρδεύει. ἄρδω ἄρσω ἄρσην ὁ ἄρδων τὴν θήλειαν. καὶ γὰρ διὰ τοῦτο πόσις λέγεται ὁ ἀνὴρ παρὰ τὸ ποτίζειν τῇ γονῇ. ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἔρδω τὸ πράττω· ὁ μέλλων ἔρσω καὶ ἄρσην ἐξ αὐτοῦ, τουτέστιν ὁ πρακτικός. οὕτως Ἡρωδιανὸς ἐν τῷ περὶ γάμου καὶ συμβιώσεως); Etym. Genuinum, alpha 1235 (idem); Ps.-Herodian, Peri pathôn (supplementum), Lentz III/2, p. 352 (ἄρσην: παρὰ ἄρδω τὸ ποτίζω ἄρσην ὁ ἄρδων τὴν θήλειαν—ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἔρδω τὸ πράττω. ὁ μέλλων ἔρσω καὶ ἄρσην ἐξ αὐτοῦ, ὁ πρακτικός. οὕτως Ἡρωδιανὸς ἐν τῷ περὶ γάμου καὶ συμβιώσεως); Etym. Gudianum Additamenta, alpha, p. 207 (Ἄρσην· ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄρδω καὶ μέλλοντος τοῦ ἄρσω· ὁ ἄρδων τὴν θήλειαν τῇ γονῇ. Ἐπαφρόδιτος <fr. 3 Luenzner> δὲ παρὰ τὸ ἔρσαι· πρακτικὸς γὰρ λέγεται ὁ ἄρσην κατὰ διάλεκτον, καὶ ἐτυμολογεῖται παρὰ τὸ ἔρδω, ἵν’ ᾖ ὁ πρακτικός. οὕτω<ς> Ἡρωδιανὸς ἐν τῷ Περὶ γάμου καὶ συμβιώσεως); Etym. Symeonis, vol. 1, p. 228 (ἄρσην· ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄρδω—2 τῇ γονῇ. ἢ παρὰ τὸ † ἄρδω, τὸ πράττω, ὁ μέλλων † ἄρσω, καὶ ἄρσην ἐξ αὐτοῦ, τουτέστιν ὁ πρακτικός); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, alpha, p. 292 (καὶ γὰρ διὰ τοῦτο πόσις λέγεται ὁ ἀνὴρ, παρὰ τὸ ποτίζειν τῇ γονῇ. ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἄρδω τὸ πράττω, ὁ μέλλων ἄρσω καὶ ἄρσην ἐξ αὐτοῦ, τουτέστιν ὁ πρακτικός)
Comment
This etymology takes as its starting point the Ionic form of "male", ἔρσην (κατὰ διάλεκτον refers to Ionic, not mentioned explicitly). In that case we have a descriptive etymology following the same principle as the competing etymology ἄρσην / ἄρδω, namely, it starts from an inflected form, future or aorist, which provides the [s]. This is a case where we Greek etymologists provide two different etymons for two dialectal variants of a given word (indeed, for that word they were followed by many modern linguists). It is not clear whether the Ps.-Herodian, to which this is attributed, endorsed the second etymology only or both. The etymological notice in the Ps.-Zonaras' Lexicon is abbreviated and elliptic, attributing seemingly the meaning "to act" to ἄρδω.