κελαινός + νέφος

Validation

Yes

Word-form

κελαινεφής

Transliteration (Word)

kelainephēs

English translation (word)

of the black cloud

Transliteration (Etymon)

kelainos + nephos

English translation (etymon)

black + cloud

Author

Apollonius Soph.

Century

1 AD

Source

Idem

Ref.

Lexicon homericum p. 149

Ed.

I. Bekker, Apollonii Sophistae lexicon Homericum, Berlin, 1833

Quotation

(s.v. τανύηκες) ὥσπερ ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ ‘κύδιστε μέγιστε κελαινεφές’ σύνθετον ἀποδεδώκαμεν τὸ ὄνομα, ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ ‘κελαινεφὲς αἷμα’ παραγωγόν

Translation (En)

As we have shown that in “most honored, highest, shrouded in black clouds” (Kudiste megiste kelainephes, Il. 2.412) the word is a compound, but in ”black blood” (kelainephes haima, Il. 4.140) it is a derivative

Comment

Elliptic etymology: the etymon (κελαινός + νέφος) is not mentioned because it is obvious, and it is implied by the technical word suntheton "compound". What Apollonius means is that the word κελαινεφής admits of two different morphological analyses. In the first one, it is a regular compound of κελαινός "black" + νέφος "cloud": that accounts for κελαινεφής as the epithet of Zeus. In the second one, κελαινεφής is not a compound, but a derivative of κελαινός "black", and has nothing to do with νέφος "cloud": that accounts for the use of the word as an epithet of αἷμα "blood". This is a complementary etymology, distinguishing two etymologies for two contextual uses of the word. According to Matthaios (1999, p. 256), this double morphological analysis according to context goes back to Aristarchus. Notice that another attempt at solving the difficulty treats the word, as an epithet of αἷμα, also as a compound, but with a different structure (D Schol. Il. 4.140 Κελαινεφές. Μέλαν ὡς νέφος "black as a cloud", comparative compound). The etymology κελαινός + νέφος is correct by modern standards.

Parallels

D Schol. Il. 2.412 (Κελαινεφές. Μελανονεφὲς, μέλανα νέφη συνάγων πρὸς κατάπληξιν); D Schol. Il. 4.140 (Κελαινεφές. Μέλαν ὡς νέφος); Herodian, Peri pathôn, Lentz III/2 p. 259 (κελαινεφές: ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ Διὸς παρὰ τὸ κελαίνω  καὶ τὸ νέφος γίνεται κελαινονεφής ὁ τὰ νέφη μελαίνων καὶ συγκοπῇ τῆς νο συλλαβῆς κελαινεφής); ibid. p. 259 (οὕτως ἐκ τοῦ κελαίνω τὸ μελαίνω καὶ τὸ νέφος γίνεται κελαινεφής κατὰ συγκοπὴν ὡς τανύω τανύπεπλος); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 501 (idem); Orion, Etymologicum, kappa, p. 83 (Κελαινεφής. ὁ Ζεύς. ὁ τὰ νέφη κλονῶν καὶ κινῶν, ἢ μελανοποιῶν ἐν τῷ ὕειν); Hesychius, Lexicon, kappa 2131 (κελαινεφές· ὁ μελαίνων τὰ νέφη); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, gamma 14 (γυναιμανές (Γ 39): ὄνομα ἀρσενικὸν κλητικόν· ἡ εὐθεῖα γυναιμανής· καὶ γίνεται, ὥσπερ παρὰ τὸ κελαινόν καὶ τὸ νέφος κελαινονεφής καὶ κελαινεφής); Etym. Gudianum, gamma, p. 325 (idem); Etym. Gudianum, kappa, p. 313 (Κελαινεφὲς, μέλαν, ποίου σχήματος; συνθέτου· πόθεν συνετίθη; ἐκ τοῦ μελαίνω καὶ τοῦ νέφος, ὁ τὰ νέφη μελαίνων· καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν, ὡς τανύω τανύπεπλος, γίνεται κελαινεφὴς); Eustathius, Comm. Il. 1, 188 Van der Valk (Ζεὺς δὲ κελαινεφὴς παρὰ τὸ κελαινὸς φαίνεσθαι· τοιοῦτος γὰρ ὁ ἀήρ. ἐντεῦθεν δὲ καὶ αἷμά που ἐρεῖ κελαινεφές. ἢ παρὰ τὸ κελαίνεσθαι καὶ νείφειν, οἱονεὶ κελαινονεφής· ἢ παρὰ τὸ κελαίνεσθαι νέφεσι· νεφεληγερέτης γάρ. εἰ δὲ εἰς νοῦν ἀλληγορεῖται, τότε κάλλιόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν αὐτὸν κελαινὸν μὲν διὰ τὸ βαθύ, φαεινὸν δὲ διὰ τὸ φύσει φωσφόρον); Eustathius, Comm. Od. 1, 386 (Ὅτι ἐν μὲν τῷ, Ζεὺς κελαινεφὴς, ἔγκειται τὸ νέφος. ἔστι γὰρ κελαινεφὴς ἐκεῖνος, ὡς τὰ νέφη μελαίνων τῇ πυκνώσει, νεφεληγερέτης γάρ. ἐν δὲ τῷ, ‘μῆλα λαβὼν ἀπεδειροτόμησα εἰς βόθρον, ῥέε δ’ αἷμα κελαινεφὲς’, ἡ λέξις τὸ κελαινεφὲς δηλοῖ, ἤγουν τὸ μέλαν. ἐπεὶ καὶ μέλαν αἷμα φησὶ πολλαχοῦ. καὶ μὴν καὶ Ζεὺς κελαινεφὴς κατὰ ἀλληγορίαν, ὁ μέλας ἰδεῖν καὶ οἱονεὶ αὐτὸς κελαινοφαὴς διὰ τὸ τοῦ νοῦ δυσόρατον); Scholia vetera in Aeschylum, Th. 43c (τὸ μελάνδετον δὲ καλῶς ἂν ἐπὶ ξίφους ῥηθείη, ἐπὶ δὲ σάκους παρέλκει τὸ δετον ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ κελαινεφὲς τὸ νεφος)

Bibliography

S. Matthaios, Untersuchungen zur Grammatik Aristarchus: Texte und Interpretation zur Wortartenlehre, Göttingen, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999 (Hypomnemata 126).

M. Leumann, Homerische Wörter, Basel, 1950, p. 202 sqq (on the two uses of κελαινεφής)

Modern etymology

The word is a possessive compound of κελαινός "black" and νέφος "cloud"

Persistence in Modern Greek

No

Entry By

Le Feuvre