δαπάνη

Forms

δᾰπᾰ́νη (dapánē) f (genitive δᾰπᾰ́νης); first declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek δάπτω (dáptō, “to devour”) + -άνη (-ánē), as σκαπάνη (skapánē) “spade” is from σκάπτω (skáptō) “to dig”: what is spent is what is “devoured”.^[2][3][1][4] Chantraine notes that this verb of beasts and fire gave two groups of derivatives that took the sense “to spend”.^[3]

The root δαπ- (dap-) is compared with Latin daps (“sacrificial meal”) and damnum (“expense, loss”), and with the Tocharian A preterite tāp- (“to eat”);^[3][2] Beekes finds these comparisons unconvincing in sense and allows a Pre-Greek origin.^[2][3]

Athenaeus derived the related verb δαπανάω (dapanáō) from δάπτω (dáptō) too;^[5] Orion explained the noun as σπάνις (spánis) “scarcity” of what one needs.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first known use is in Hesiod's Works and Days, meaning expense, the cost of something.^[2][6][7]

Semantic evolution

Theognis, Pindar and Herodotus use it of outlay and expenditure, and of money given for spending; in Pindar it is the cost of keeping horses for the games.^[7][6] Euripides uses it figuratively: it costs little to believe something.^[6][7] Aeschines uses it of extravagance as a trait of character.^[7][6] Chantraine cites Benveniste on the social value of lavish spending that the word reflects.^[3] From it came δαπανάω (dapanáō) “to spend, consume”, δαπανηρός (dapanērós) “extravagant” and δαπάνημα (dapánēma) “cost”;^[2] Latin borrowed the verb as Latin dapinō.^[2]

In the Gospel of Luke it is the cost that a builder should calculate first.^[8] Medieval vernacular Greek kept the word, and Modern Greek δαπάνη (dapáni), a learned form, means “expense, expenditure”.^[9][10]

Timeline

• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod's Works and Days uses it of cost.^[2][6][4]
• 6th century BC – Theognis uses it of expenditure.^[7][4]
• 5th century BC – Pindar uses it of the cost of horses;^[6] Herodotus and Thucydides of money for spending.^[6][7][4]
• 4th century BC – Aeschines uses it of extravagance.^[7][6][4]
• 1st century AD – The Gospel of Luke speaks of calculating the cost.^[8]
• Modern Greek – Modern Greek δαπάνη (dapáni) means “expense”.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. Cost, expenditure, outlay of money or goods.^[6][7]
2. Money for spending.^[6]
3. Extravagance, a tendency to spend lavishly.^[7][6]

Word family

• δαπανάω (dapanáō)
• δαπάνημα (dapánēma)
• δαπανηρία (dapanēría)
• δαπανηρός (dapanērós)

Related words

• δάπτω (dáptō)
• δαψιλής (dapsilḗs)
• Latin daps

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g 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
3. ^ a b c d e 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
4. ^ a b c d e Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
5. ^ a b Etygram: ancient etymologies of Greek words, CEPAM, Université Côte d'Azur, http://appsweb-cepam.unice.fr/etygram
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
8. ^ a b Bauer, Walter; Danker, Frederick W., et al. (2000), A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press
9. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
10. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki