Etymologically
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μάχαιρα

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Pronunciation

  • 5th-century BC Attic: /má.kʰai̯.ra/[1]
  • 4th-century AD Koine: /ˈma.çɛ.ra/[1]
  • 10th-century Byzantine: /ˈma.çe.ra/[1]

Forms

μᾰ́χαιρᾰ (mákhaira) f (genitive μᾰχαίρᾱς); first declension[1]

Etymology

Beekes considers it Pre-Greek, comparing μάγειρος (mágeiros, “cook”): the interchange of ⟨γ⟩ and ⟨χ⟩ and the suffix ⟨-αιρ-⟩ are Pre-Greek features.[2][3] In form it looks like γέραιρα (géraira), χίμαιρα (khímaira) and πίειρα (píeira), a feminine derived from an r-stem.[2][4]

The traditional link with μάχομαι (mákhomai, “to fight”), which Frisk keeps, is formally possible, but Chantraine finds it implausible.[5][1][4] Lewy proposed a Semitic source, comparing Biblical Hebrew מכרה (mᵉkērā), but the Hebrew word occurs once and its sense “sword” is doubtful.[6] Gordon takes it to come from Greek, and Rosół lists the etymology among those he rejects.[2][6][4] It was borrowed as Latin machaera.[2][7]

Ancient grammarians derived it from μάχη (mákhē, “battle”) with ἀείρω (aeírō, “to lift”), because it was hung up for battle, or with χαίρω (khaírō, “to rejoice”), because it rejoices in fighting.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Iliad it is the large knife that hangs beside the sword's scabbard; it is used to cut hair from sacrificial victims and an arrowhead out of a wound.[9][10]

Semantic evolution

From the Homeric Hymns and Pindar on it is the knife for carving meat and killing victims, in Herodotus, Aristophanes and Plato.[9][10] As a weapon it is a dagger or short sword, in Pindar, Herodotus and Lysias, and in Antiphon an assassin's weapon.[9] Xenophon uses it for the curved sabre, as opposed to the straight sword ξίφος (xíphos).[9][10] Cratinus uses it for shears, and Plutarch has the plural for scissors.[9][10]

In the Septuagint it alternates with ῥομφαία (rhomphaía) as the usual rendering of the Hebrew word for “sword”, and also means a sacrificial knife.[11] In the New Testament it is the sword, and by metonymy war as opposed to peace.[12][10]

Its diminutive μαχαίριον (makhaírion) became medieval μαχαίριν (makhaírin) and Modern Greek μαχαίρι (machaíri); μάχαιρα (máchaira) is a learned word.[13]

Timeline

  • Homer – The Iliad uses it for a large knife carried beside the sword.[9][10]
  • 6th–5th century BC – Pindar uses it for a carving knife and for a dagger.[9][14]
  • 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it for a dagger.[9][14]
  • 5th–4th century BC – Xenophon contrasts it, as a sabre, with the straight sword.[9][10][14]
  • 1st century AD – The New Testament uses it for the sword and for war.[12][10]
  • Modern Greek – Modern Greek μαχαίρι (machaíri) continues its medieval diminutive.[13]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A large knife, carried beside the sword; a carving or sacrificial knife.[9][10]
  2. As a weapon, a dagger or short sword.[9][10]
  3. A sabre, a curved sword as opposed to the straight ξίφος (xíphos).[9][10]
  4. Shears, a razor; in the plural, scissors.[9][10]
  5. (New Testament) A sword; by metonymy, war.[12][10]

Word family

  • μαχαίριον (makhaírion)
  • μαχαιρίς (makhairís)
  • μαχαιρίδιον (makhairídion)
  • μαχαιρωτός (makhairōtós)

Usage notes

“The Delphic knife” was a knife for many purposes, and also a proverb for greedy people, because the sacrificers at Delphi claimed a share for the knife.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d 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. ^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2014), Pre-Greek: Phonology, Morphology, Lexicon, ed. Stefan Norbruis, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b c 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
  5. ^ Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
  6. ^ a b Rosół, Rafał (2013), Frühe semitische Lehnwörter im Griechischen, Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang
  7. ^ Saalfeld, Günther Alexander (1874), Index Graecorum vocabulorum in linguam latinam translatorum, Berlin: Weidmann
  8. ^ Etygram: ancient etymologies of Greek words, CEPAM, Université Côte d'Azur, http://appsweb-cepam.unice.fr/etygram
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  11. ^ Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
  12. ^ a b c 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
  13. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
  14. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge