πατέω

Validation

No

Word-form

τάπητες

Transliteration (Word)

tapēs

English translation (word)

carpet, rug

Transliteration (Etymon)

pateō

English translation (etymon)

to tread, walk

Author

Etym. Magnum

Century

12 AD

Source

Idem

Ref.

Etym Magnum, Kallierges p. 746

Ed.

T. Gaisford, Etymologicum Magnum, Oxford, 1848

Quotation

Τάπητες: Ἐπιβόλαια, ἢ στρώματα. Οὕτως Ἀριστοφάνης. Ἐτυμολογεῖ δὲ αὐτὸ Ὠρίων παρὰ τὸ θάλπω, θάλπης· καὶ μεταθέσει τοῦ θ εἰς τ, καὶ ἀποβολῇ τοῦ λ, τάπης. Ἢ δάπης καὶ τάπης. Ἢ παρὰ τὸ θάπτω, θάφης καὶ τάπης· ἢ παρὰ τὸ πατῶ, πάτης καὶ τάπης

Translation (En)

Tapētes "carpets": blankets or rugs. This is what Aristophanes says. Orion says it comes from thalpō "to heat", *thalpēs, and through change of the [th] into [t] and dropping of the [l], tapēs. Or <it comes from> dapēs, and tapēs. Or from thaptō "to bury", *thaphēs and tapēs. Or from patô "to tread on", *patēs and tapēs

Comment

Descriptive etymology: the carpet lies on the floor and one walks on it. The etymon is supposed to be the verb πατέω "to tread on": this etymology implies a formal manipulation, a metathesis of the consonants.

Parallels

Eustathius, Comm. Il. 2, 698 Van der Valk (Καὶ σημείωσαι ὅτι ὁ τάπης ὑπόκειται, οὐ μὴν ὑπέρκειται οἷά τι σκέπασμα, καθά τινες ἐν ἄλλοις οἴονται. Καί πως δηλοῖ τοῦτο καὶ ἡ τῆς λέξεως ἐτυμολογία, παραγομένης ἐκ τοῦ πατεῖσθαι κατὰ μετάθεσιν. ἐξ οὗ ῥήματος παρῆκται καὶ ὁ ταπεινός); ibid., 3, 35 (Ὅθεν καὶ ἡ λέξις παρὰ τὸ πατεῖσθαι παρῆκται. πάτης γάρ τις ὁ τάπης ἐστὶ κατὰ μετάθεσιν, ὁποίαν πάσχει καὶ ὁ ταπεινός ἐκ τοῦ πάτου παραγόμενος); ibid., 4, 894 (Οἱ δὲ τάπητες πολλαχοῦ φαίνονται ὑποκεῖσθαι κατά τι εἶδος στρωμνῆς, ὁποῖα ἴσως καὶ τὰ καλούμενα ἐπεύχια. διὸ καὶ ἡ πολλὴ ἐτυμολογία ἐκ τοῦ πατεῖσθαι αὐτὰ παράγει. εἰ δέ τις μάθοι ἐν τοῖς ἑξῆς τὸ «δέμνια θεῖναι καὶ ῥήγεα ἐμβαλεῖν στορέσαι τ’ ἐφύπερθε τάπητας» ἕτερόν τι νοήσει τοὺς τάπητας, οὓς οἱ παλαιοὶ μεταβολεῖς τῶν λέξεων ἓν πρὸς ἓν φράζοντες ἐφαπλώματα ἑρμηνεύουσι, συγκροτούμενοι ἐκ τοῦ «ἐφύπερθεν». καὶ ἀργεῖ ἐνταῦθα ἡ ἐκ τοῦ πατεῖν ἐτυμολογία. κρεῖττον δὲ ἢ ἐκ τοῦ θάλπω εἰπεῖν κατὰ τοὺς παλαιοὺς θάλπης, καὶ μεταθέσει Ἰωνικῇ καὶ ἐκβολῇ τοῦ λ, τάπης, ἢ ἐκ τοῦ ταφών, ὁ ἐκπλαγεὶς τάφης καὶ τάπης ὁ τὸν ὁρῶντα ἐκπλήττων); ibid., 4, 968 (ὅτι δὲ οἱ τάπητες οὐ σκέπουσιν, ὡς ἐρρέθη, ἀλλ’ ὑπόκεινται μᾶλλον, ὡς καὶ ἡ ἐτυμολογία δηλοῖ, παρὰ τὸ πατεῖσθαι γὰρ γίνονται, πολλαχοῦ φαίνεται); Eustathius, Comm. Od. 1, 66 (ὑπόκεινται γὰρ τοῖς ῥήγεσιν οἱ τάπητες ὡς ἡ ἐτυμολογία δηλοῖ ἐν ἄλλοις ῥηθεῖσα. παρὰ τὸ πατεῖσθαι γὰρ γίνονται)

Modern etymology

Probably a loanword. The Latin word tapēte was borrowed from Greek (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

MG still has τάπητας as: 1. a learned word for 'rug', the usual word being χαλί, 2. designating anything which covers a big surface from one edge to another. It is a calque from French "tapis" (see also ταπετσαρία). Popular phrase: "θέτω επί τάπητος".

Entry By

Le Feuvre