μάντις

Pronunciation

• IPA (5th-century BC Attic): /mán.tis/^[1]
• IPA (4th-century AD Koine): /ˈman.tis/^[1]
• IPA (10th-century Byzantine): /ˈman.tis/^[1]

Forms

μᾰ́ντῐς (mántis) m (genitive μᾰ́ντεως); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It seems to be derived from μαίνομαι (maínomai, “to rage, be inspired”), as in Herodotus' “raving by the god”.^[2] Beekes and Frisk take it most naturally as an original feminine abstract noun like φάτις (phátis), but its vowel /a/ would then have to be an analogical zero grade, which makes the etymology a little doubtful.^[2][3] As a masculine agent noun in -τις (-tis) it is almost isolated; only μάρπτις (márptis, “robber”) and πόρτις (pórtis, “calf”) are similar.^[2][3] Wiktionary sets up *mə́tis, *mń̥tis (“thought”), from Proto-Indo-European *men- (“to think”), with the nasal restored.^[1] Benveniste's reconstruction of an old neuter *μάντι (*mánti, “divination”) is rejected by Beekes.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Homer uses it for a seer: “let us ask some seer, or priest, or interpreter of dreams” (Iliad 1.62), and “prophet of evils” (Iliad 1.106).^[4][5]

Semantic evolution

A μάντις foretold the future either as the mouthpiece of a god or by interpreting signs; seers went with the Greek armies.^[6][4] Thucydides distinguishes them from the collectors of oracles, and Aeschylus and Euripides call Apollo and Dionysus seers.^[4][6] Tragedy uses it figuratively for anyone or anything that predicts, even a terrifying dream, and Plutarch for the Roman augur.^[6]

Its derivatives include μαντεῖον (manteîon) “oracle” (Odyssey 12.272) and μαντική (mantikḗ) “the art of divination”.^[2] Theocritus uses it for the praying mantis, Nicander for a plant, and Hesychius for a garden frog that foretold the weather.^[2] English mantis (1650s) comes from it through Modern Latin.^[7] The modern form is Modern Greek μάντης (mántis).^[8]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad uses it for a seer.^[4][5]
• 5th century BC – Thucydides distinguishes seers from oracle-collectors.^[4][9]
• 6th–5th century BC – Aeschylus calls Apollo a seer.^[4][6][9]
• 3rd century BC – Theocritus uses it for the praying mantis.^[2][9]
• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses it for a Roman augur.^[6][9]
• 1650s – English borrows mantis for the insect.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. A seer, prophet, diviner.^[4][6]
2. (Roman context) An augur.^[6]
3. (figurative) A predictor, forecaster.^[6]
4. The praying mantis.^[6][2]
5. A plant; a garden frog.^[2]

Word family

• ἰατρόμαντις (iatrómantis)
• μαντεία (manteíā)
• μαντεῖον (manteîon)
• μαντεῖος (manteîos)
• μαντεύομαι (manteúomai)
• οἰωνόμαντις (oiōnómantis)

Related words

• English mantis

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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 Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
4. ^ a b c d e f g Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
8. ^ Πάπυρος–Larousse–Britannica, Μέγα Λεξικό της Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Athens: Πάπυρος
9. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge