μέλι

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No

Last modification

Thu, 08/05/2021 - 14:03

Word-form

βλίττειν

Transliteration (Word)

blittō

English translation (word)

to cut out the comb of bees

Transliteration (Etymon)

meli

English translation (etymon)

honey

Author

Etym. Genuinum

Century

9 AD

Source

Idem

Ref.

beta 148

Ed.

F. Lasserre and N. Livadaras, Etymologicum magnum genuinum. Symeonis etymologicum una cum magna grammatica. Etymologicum magnum auctum, vol. 2, Athens: Parnassos Literary Society, 1992

Quotation

Βλίττειν· ἀφαιρεῖν τὸ μέλι ἀπὸ τῶν κηρίων, ἐκπιέζειν καὶ θλίβειν· ... παρὰ τὸ μέλι μελίζω καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ μ εἰς τὸ β διὰ τὴν ἀσυνταξίαν βλίζω καὶ Ἀττικῶς βλίττω

Translation (En)

Blittein ("to cut out the comb of bees"): to take away the honey from the honeycombs, to squeeze out and to press. ... from meli ("honey"), *melizō and with syncope and change of [m] into [b] because of the incompatibility, blizō, and Attic blittō.

Comment

Derivational etymology considered correct by modern linguistics. The syncope described by the Greek source is what in modern terms is a zero grade. The interesting element is the word ἀσυνταξία which refers to the fact that [m] and [l] cannot be immediately consecutive in this order, and that imposes a "change" of [m] into [b]. This is a strictly synchronic description of the phenomenon of epenthetic [b] in a sequence [ml], in modern terms: *[ml] > [mbl] > [bl] in initial position (cf. (μ)βλώσκω, μολοῦμαι, ἔμολον, μέμβλωκα)

Parallels

Etym. Genuinum, beta 147 (Βλίσαι· ῥητορική. τὸ τὰ κηρία θλίψαι τῶν μελισσῶν βλίσαι λέγεται· ἀπὸ τοῦ μέλι μελίζω καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν καὶ τροπῇ βλίζω); Etym. Gudianum, beta, p. 274 (Βλίττειν· [καὶ βλιρῶ] τὸ ἀφαιρεῖν τὸ μέλι ἀπὸ τῶν κηρίων, τουτέστιν ἐκπιέζειν καὶ θλίβειν. παρὰ τὸ μέλι μελίζω καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ μ εἰς β <διὰ τὴν ἀσυνταξίαν βλίζω> καὶ Ἀττικῶς βλίττω. ἢ τὸ μαστροπεῖν); Etym. Magnum Kallierges, p. 200 (Βλίσαι: Τὸ τὰ κηρία θλίψαι τῶν μελισσῶν. Ἀπὸ τοῦ μέλι, μελίζω· καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν καὶ τροπὴν, βλίζω· καὶ Ἀττικῶς, βλίττω· καὶ βλίττειν, τὸ ἀφαιρεῖν τὸ μέλι ἀπὸ τῶν κηρίων, τουτέστιν ἐκπιέζειν καὶ θλίβειν· ἐπὶ τὸ κινεῖσθαί πως); Etym. Symeonis, vol. 1, p. 450 (βλιμάζω· ἀποστάζων τοῦ μέλιτος, οἷον (Fr. rhet. inc.) «ἡμεῖς δὲ καθάπερ οἱ ὀπωρίζοντες τοὺς Ἀττικοὺς ὀλύνθους βλιμάζομεν». εἴρηται δὲ βλιμάζειν τὸ ψηλαφᾶν τὰ στήθη καὶ τοὺς μαστοὺς καταμανθάνειν τῇ ἁφῇ—4 ὥς φησι † Κράτης (Cratin. Fr. 302)· ὡς μαλακὸν καὶ τέρεν τὸ χρωτίδιον, ὦ θεοί, καὶ γὰρ ἐβλίμαζον αὐτήν, ἡ δ’ ἐφρόντιζεν οὐδὲ ἕν. λαμβάνεται—451, 2 τρυγᾶν, ὡς Ἀριστοφάνης (Eq. 794)· ἀλλὰ καθείρξας αὐτὸν βλίττεις· καὶ Σοφοκλῆς (Fr. 778)· ἢ σφηκίαν βλίττουσιν εὑρόντες τινά. παρὰ τὸ μέλι μελίζω καὶ κατὰ συγκοπὴν καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ μ εἰς β καὶ <τοῦ ζ εἰς δύο ττ> Ἀττικῶς βλίττω. τὸ δὲ βλιμάζειν παρὰ τὸ <φλίβω, τὸ> θλίβω, ὅθεν καὶ Ὅμηρος φλιά, οἷον (ρ 221)).

Modern etymology

Βλίττω is a denominative of μέλι, μέλιτος "honey", from *mlit-ye/o- (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

No

Entry By

Arthur de Tocqueville