ἀ- + σίνομαι
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Quotation
Βασιλεύς παρὰ τὸ σίνω, σινεὺς, ὁ βλαπτικὸς, καὶ μετὰ τοῦ στερητικοῦ Α, ἀσινεὺς, ὁ ἀβλαβὴς, ὃν οὐδεὶς δύναται βλάψαι, καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ Ν εἰς Λ, καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ Β, βασιλεύς. Καὶ πόθεν ἐτυμολογεῖται; Παρὰ τὸ βάσις εἶναι ἐλέους ἢ ἐπίβασις καὶ ὕψος? δὲ (δεῖ) γὰρ ἀληθῶς βασιλέα καλοποιεῖν, ὁ δὲ κακοποιεῖ(ῶν) τύραννος· ἢ παρὰ τὸ βάσις εἶναι λαοῦ, οἱονεὶ ἕδρα καὶ στήριγμα· ἢ παρὰ τὸ πεπᾶσθαι λαοὺς, τουτέστι κεκτῆσθαι· ἢ παρ’ αὐτὸ (παρὰ τὸ) ἐπὶ πᾶσι λεύσσειν, καὶ πάντων προνοεῖσθαι
Translation (En)
Basileus "king" comes from sinō "to harm", *sineus "harming", and with the privative a-, *asineus "who is exempt from harm, whom nobody can harm", and through change of the [n] into [l], and addition of [b], basileus. And what is its etymology? From the fact that it is the basis of mercy (basis eleous), or its highest degree and summit, for indeed a king must do good actions, and the one who acts wrongly is a tyrant; or from the fact that he is the basis of his people (basis laoû), as though he were a seat and a support; or from the fact that he is master of the people (pepâsthai laous), that is, he owns them; or from the fact that he watches everyone (epi pâsi leussein), and foresees everything
Parallels
Etym. Genuinum, beta 46 (Βασιλεύς (Ps. 2, 2)· παρὰ τὸ σίνω, τὸ βλάπτω, γίνεται σινεύς, ὁ βλαπτικός, ἀσινεύς, ὁ ἀβλαβής, καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ ν εἰς τὸ λ ἀσιλεύς καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ β βασιλεύς. ἢ παρὰ τὸ βαίνειν ἵλεως. ἢ παρὰ τὸ πεπᾶσθαι λαούς, ὅ ἐστι κεκτῆσθαι· πάσασθαι γὰρ τὸ κτήσασθαι, καὶ πάμματα τὰ κτήματα, καὶ Δ 433 "πολυπάμμονος". ἵν’ ᾖ πασιλεύς, καὶ βασιλεύς. ἢ ὁ περὶ τὴν βάσιν ἴλην ἔχων, τουτέστι μετὰ πλήθους ποιούμενος τὴν βάσιν καὶ τὴν ἔξοδον. ἢ ὅτι λαοῦ ἐστι βάσις καὶ στήριγμα. ἢ παρὰ τὴν βάσιν καὶ τὸ λεύσσειν, ὁ ἐν τῷ περιϊέναι περίβλεπτος. ἢ πασιλεύς τις ὤν, ὁ πάντας λεύσσων καὶ πάντων προνοῶν); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges p. 189 (idem); Epimerismi homerici Il. 1.9d (βασιλῆϊ: παρὰ τὸ σίνω, τὸ σημαῖνον τὸ βλέπω, γίνεται εἰς ευς σινεύς καὶ μεταβολῇ τοῦ ν εἰς λ σιλεύς, εἶτα μετὰ τῆς α στερήσεως καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ β βασιλεύς, ὃν οὐδεὶς <δύναται> ἰσχύϊ βλάψαι)
Comment
This is a rare instance of etymology in which the privative prefix a- is identified in a word where it is not in initial position. The etymology implies several formal manipulations (a prothetic consonant and a change of [n] into [l]). The intermediate steps *sineus and *asineus are ghost-words. From the semantic point of view, it implies a passive meaning of sinomai, whereas the verb always means "to harm" and never "to be harmed", but Greek scholars were insensitive to diathesis in compounds (or in words parsed as compounds). The king is defined as the invincible one: the performative dimension of name-giving is here transposed to a common noun. Choeroboscus' notice probably results from the sewing together of two different sources, since he gives a first etymology, and then adds "and what is the etymology?" before providing a series of others, as though he were forgetting that he has already given an etymology