ἀλάομαι
Word
Validation
Word-form
Word-lemma
Etymon-lemma
Transliteration (Word)
English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
Century
Source
Ref.
Ed.
Quotation
ἀλαός τυφλός· “καί κ’ ἀλαὸς τόδε ξεῖνε διακρίνειε τὸ σῆμα.” εἴρηται δὲ κατὰ τὸ ἀλᾶσθαι τὴν πορείαν, οὐχ ὡς ἔνιοι, παρὰ τὸ μὴ λάειν, ὅ ἐστι βλέπειν
Translation (En)
Alaos "blind", ‘even a blind man, stranger, would recognize this sign’ (Il. 8.195). It comes from alâsthai "to wander" while walking, not, as some say, from the fact that one does not see (mē laein)
Parallels
Herodian, De prosodia catholica, Lentz III/1, p. 112 (ἀλαός ὁ περιπλανώμενος. Σέλευκος δὲ παρὰ τὸ ἀλάσαι, ὃ σημαίνει τὸ ἐλαττῶσαι ἵν’ ᾖ τὸ ἐλαττωθεὶς τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς. ἄλλοι δὲ ὁ τυφλὸς καὶ ἐστερημένος τοῦ λάειν ἤτοι βλέπειν); Herodian, Περὶ ῥηματικῶν ὀνομάτων, Lentz III/2, p. 898 (παρὰ τὸ ἀλῶ τὸ πλανῶμαι ἀλαός ὁ περιπλανώμενος); Hesychius, Lexicon, alpha 2763 ([ἀλαός]· ὁ τυφλός παρὰ τὸ ἀλᾶσθαι κατὰ τὴν πορείαν); Epimerismi homerici ordine alphabetico traditi, alpha 319 (ἀλαός: ὁ τυφλός, ὁ ἐστερημένος τοῦ λάειν, ἤτοι βλέπειν. †Ἀρίσταρχος τὸ παρὰ τῷ ποιητῇ ‘ἀσπαίροντα λάων’ (τ 229) οὕτως ἐξηγεῖται· „ἀντὶ τοῦ βλέπων“. Ἡρωδιανὸς δὲ (1, 112, 10 = 2, 898, 39) παρὰ τὸ ἀλῶ, τὸ πλανῶμαι, ἀλαός, ὁ περιπλανώμενος. Σέλευκος δὲ (p. 43 [θ 195] Mueller) παρὰ τὸ ἀλάσαι, ὃ σημαίνει τὸ ἐλαττῶ<σαι>, {καὶ} ἵν’ ᾖ ὁ ἐλαττωθεὶς τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς); Etym. Genuinum, alpha 397 ( Ἀλαός (θ 195)· ὁ τυφλός, ὁ ἐστερημένος τοῦ λάειν, ὅ ἐστι βλέπειν· Ὅμηρος (τ 229)· ‘ἀσπαίροντα λάων’, ἀντὶ τοῦ βλέποντα. ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀλῶ, τὸ πλανῶ, ἀλαός, ὁ περιπλανώμενος. ἢ παρὰ τὸ † ἀλᾶσσαι, ὃ σημαίνει τὸ ἐλαττῶσαι, ὁ ἐλαττωθεὶς τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 57 (idem); Etym. Symeonis, vol. 1, p. 254 (idem); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, alpha, p. 116 (Ἀλαός. ὁ τυφλὸς ἢ ὁ πλανώμενος. Ὅμηρος· ‘ἀσπαίροντα λάων’, ἀντὶ τοῦ βλέπων. ἢ παρὰ τὸ ἀλῶ, τὸ πλανῶ, ἀλαὸς ὁ πλανώμενος)
Comment
The etymology relates the adjective to the verb ἀλάομαι "to wander", From the formal point of view, the match is perfect and no formal manipulation is required. From the semantic point of view, the word is derived from a verb which expresses one of the consequences of blindness: a blind man wanders because he cannot see the road. The relation between lemma and etymon is from cause to consequence, which reverses the usual direction of the etymological analysis: as a rule, in Greek etymology the etymon is assumed to be the cause