μνάομαι

Forms

μνάομαι (mnáomai) ^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Indo-European *mneh₂- (“to remind”), probably an extension of *men- (“to think, remember”).^[2][3][1] Outside Greek the root is found mainly in Sanskrit, and Chantraine sets μνάομαι beside Sanskrit म्नायते (mnāyate, “is mentioned”).^[3][2] Beekes thinks it was rather formed in Greek after the aorist μνήσασθαι (mnḗsasthai), and that the whole paradigm of μιμνήσκω (mimnḗskō) is a Greek creation.^[2][1]

The sense “to woo” grew out of “to be mindful of” as a courteous expression, as Benveniste showed.^[2] LSJ instead traced that sense to the root of γυνή (gunḗ), a link that Beekes rejects.^[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Iliad it means to be mindful of or turn one's mind to something, such as war or flight.^[4][5]

Semantic evolution

The sense “to woo a woman” appears in the Odyssey, not in the Iliad, of the suitors,^[4] and Homer also uses it without an object, “to go wooing”.^[4][5] Hesiod's fragments, the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite and Anacreon continue it.^[5][6] After Homer it also means to seek or sue for something: Pindar uses it of seeking honour, Herodotus of seeking office or kingship.^[4][5] The compound προμνάομαι (promnáomai) “to woo on another's behalf” is found in Sophocles, Plato and Xenophon.^[2]

It belongs to epic, Ionic and late prose and occurs only once in comedy.^[4] The Hellenistic poets revived the sense “to remember”, and Plutarch uses it of seeking a husband for one's daughter, a master, reconciliation and friendship.^[5][4]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad uses it of being mindful of war and flight.^[4][5]
• Homer – The Odyssey uses it of wooing a woman.^[4][5]
• 6th–5th century BC – Pindar uses it of seeking honour.^[4][5][7]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it of seeking office and kingship.^[4][5][7]
• 3rd century BC – Apollonius Rhodius uses it of remembering.^[4][5][7]
• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses it of seeking a husband for a daughter and of seeking reconciliation.^[5][7]

Meanings

Verb

1. To be mindful of, think of, turn one's mind to something.^[4][5]
2. To recall, remember.^[5][4]
3. To woo or court a woman; without an object, to go wooing.^[4][5]
4. To seek a husband for one's daughter.^[5]
5. To seek eagerly, solicit office, power, honour or a favour.^[4][5]

Word family

• ἀμνημονέω (amnēmonéō)
• ἀμνήμων (amnḗmōn)
• ἀμνηστέω (amnēstéō)
• ἀμνηστία (amnēstíā)
• μνῆμα (mnêma)
• μνημεῖον (mnēmeîon)
• μνήμη (mnḗmē)
• μνημονεύω (mnēmoneúō)
• μνημονικός (mnēmonikós)
• μνημοσύνη (mnēmosúnē)
• μνημόσυνον (mnēmósunon)
• μνήμων (mnḗmōn)
• μνησικακέω (mnēsikakéō)
• μνησικακία (mnēsikakía)
• μνηστήρ (mnēstḗr)
• προμνάομαι (promnáomai)

Related words

• μιμνήσκω (mimnḗskō)
• μέμονα (mémona)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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 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 f g h i j k l m n o p Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
6. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
7. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge