βουκόλος

Forms

βουκόλος (boukólos) m (genitive βουκόλου); second declension^[1] Doric βωκόλος (Bion).^[2] Mycenaean Greek qo-u-ko-ro.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *gʷoukólos, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *gʷow-kólos, an old compound of Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws (“cow”) and Proto-Indo-European *kʷól-os (“herder”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- (“to turn; to tend”).^[1][3] In Greek terms it joins βοῦς (boûs, “cow”) and the root of πέλομαι (pélomai).^[3][4][5] It is matched exactly by Old Irish búachaill (“herdsman”) and Middle Welsh bugail (“shepherd”).^[3][4][2]

The ⟨κ⟩ where αἰπόλος (aipólos, “goatherd”) has ⟨π⟩ is due to dissimilation of the labiovelar after the ⟨u⟩ of the first part, a change named after this word.^[1][4] Mycenaean already has Mycenaean Greek qo-u-ko-ro.^[2][1][4]

Ancient grammarians proposed other sources, such as Didymus' derivation from κομέω (koméō, “to tend”).^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Mycenaean tablets have Mycenaean Greek qo-u-ko-ro.^[2][1] In Homer it is a cowherd, often in apposition to “men”, in both the Iliad and the Odyssey.^[7][5]

Semantic evolution

It remained the word for a herdsman of cattle in Herodotus, Sophocles and Euripides, and by extension for any herdsman.^[5][2] Aeschylus calls the gadfly that pursued Io a “herdsman”.^[7][5] In cult it named worshippers of Dionysus in bull form, the title of a play by Cratinus, and in a papyrus a devotee of Sarapis.^[7] From it came βουκολικός (boukolikós), “of a cowherd”, and so “bucolic”, the term for Theocritus' poetry.^[8]

Medieval vernacular Greek kept the word, and it is widespread in Modern Greek dialects; the standard language has it as a learned word, Modern Greek βουκόλος (vukólos), a cowherd.^[9][10][11]

Timeline

• Mycenaean – The tablets record Mycenaean Greek qo-u-ko-ro.^[2]
• Homer – The Iliad and the Odyssey use it for herdsmen of cattle.^[7][12]
• 6th–5th century BC – Aeschylus uses it for the gadfly that drives Io.^[7][5][2]
• 5th century BC – Cratinus names a comedy after the worshippers of Dionysus called by it.^[7][2]
• 4th–3rd century BC – Theocritus uses it for the herdsmen of his poems.^[2]
• Modern Greek – The learned Modern Greek βουκόλος (vukólos) is a cowherd.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. A cowherd, herdsman of cattle; generally, a herdsman.^[7][5][2]
2. Of the gadfly pursuing Io, or of her guardian Argus.^[5][7]
3. In the plural, worshippers of Dionysus in bull form; a devotee of Sarapis.^[7]

Word family

• βουκολικός (boukolikós)
• ἐπιβουκόλος (epiboukólos)
• βουκολέω (boukoléō)
• βουκόλιον (boukólion)

Related words

• βοῦς (boûs)
• αἰπόλος (aipólos)
• πέλομαι (pélomai)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
3. ^ a b c Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c d Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
5. ^ a b c d e f g Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
6. ^ Etygram: ancient etymologies of Greek words, CEPAM, Université Côte d'Azur, http://appsweb-cepam.unice.fr/etygram
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ Chantraine, Pierre (2009), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: histoire des mots, new ed. with a supplement (Chroniques d'étymologie grecque 1–10), Paris: Klincksieck
9. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
10. ^ Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
11. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
12. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux