ἄγαν + ἵημι
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English translation (word)
Transliteration (Etymon)
English translation (etymon)
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Quotation
οἷς ἀγανοῖς· ἢ ταχυτάτοις, ἄγαν ἱεμένοις. καὶ ἀγανὸς ἐτυμολογεῖται ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄγαν νέειν εἰς αὐτὸν πάντας, ὡς καὶ ἀγαθός ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄγαν θέειν περὶ αὐτόν· τὸν γὰρ ἀγαθὸν πάντες φιλοῦντες εἰς αὐτὸν τρέχομεν. ὁμοίως καὶ εἰς τὸν ἀγανὸν ἤτοι λαμπρὸν καὶ ἐνάρετον πάντες πορευόμεθα
Translation (En)
hois aganois] either the swiftest ones, "thrown" (hiemenois) "violently" (agan); and aganos comes etymologically from the fact that all "go with force" (agan neein) to him, as ἀγαθός from "to run with force" (agan theein) around him, since all of us, loving the good one, run toward him. Similarly, we all go to the one who is mild, that is, shining and virtuous
Parallels
Schol. Od. γ 280a1 Pontani (ἀγανοῖς· […] ἐτυμολογεῖται δὲ ἐκ τοῦ α στερητικοῦ μορίου καὶ τοῦ γάννυμαι, ἢ ἐκ τοῦ ἄγαν ἱεμένοις); Schol. Od. γ 280a2 Pontani: ἀγανοῖς· λαμπροῖς (mss M1) / ταχυτάτοις (mss H) / τοῖς ἄγαν ἱεμένοις (mss EHs) / τοῖς ὀξυτάτοις (mss Es)); Schol. Od. ε 8b1 Pontani (ἀγανός] ἄγαν τοῖς λόγοις ἱέμενος, ἤγουν ἡδυλόγος)
Bibliography
On the different etymologies proposed by Greek scholars for the different Homeric contexts, see C. Le Feuvre, "Implicit elements in scholiasts' etymological analyses", in A. Zucker, C. Le Feuvre (Eds), Ancient and medieval Greek etymology. Theory and practice I, Berlin, de Gruyter, 2021, pp. 76-80.
Comment
This etymology was designed to account for the use in the phrase ἀγανοῖσι βέλεσσι "mild arrows". In this context, ἀγανός was diversely understood, and some scholars sought to give to the adjective a meaning more compatible with "arrows" than "mild". Hence the meaning here "quick", and the etymology "thrown with force", which is the cause of the quick move. This etymology is interesting because it was transferred from the noun αἰγανέη "javelin" (a kind of βέλος) to ἀγανός as epithet of a βέλος, although a different one (see Le Feuvre 2021). In ἀγανός, the root of ἵημι is completely lost and only ἄγαν remains identifiable (whereas in αἰγανέη the end of the word -έη was assumed to be ἵημι): this proves that the etymology was not designed for this word but for a different word (namely αἰγανέη). The scholion to Od. 5.8 then mixes this etymology with the use of ἀγανός as epithet of "words" (ἀγανοῖς ἐπέεσσι), which results in a bizarre explanation in a context where ἀγανός qualifies a man and not a word: "he who moves on with words, that is, sweet-speaking"