ἐρέφω

Forms

ἐρέφω (eréphō) ^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *erépʰō,^[1] inherited from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rébʰeti, from the root *h₁rebʰ- (“to cover, roof”).^[1][2][3] Frisk calls it undoubtedly inherited, but the only cognates are in Germanic: the second part of Old High German hirnireba (“skull”), properly “brain-cover”, and the word for “rib”, the cover of the chest: Old High German rippa, Old English ribb and Old Norse rif.^[4][2] The LIV marks the root as uncertain.^[3]

The nouns ὀροφή (orophḗ, “roof”) and ὄροφος (órophos, “reed thatch”) have two o-grades, of which the first must be secondary.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In Homer it means to cover with a roof: a temple, or a hut thatched with reeds cut from the meadow.^[5][6][7]

Semantic evolution

From roofing, the poets passed to crowning: Pindar has a man crowned with two wreaths of celery and a temple wreathed with skulls, Sophocles the rim and handles of a bowl wreathed with wool, and Euripides people crowning themselves with ivy.^[5][7] Pindar also uses it simply for covering, of down covering a chin.^[5][7]

In prose it is rare: Demosthenes' “he roofed the house with timber” is its only Attic prose example.^[5] Apollonius of Rhodes uses it for a ship roofed over with shields.^[7] A by-form ἐρέπτω (eréptō) also exists.^[7][5]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad and the Odyssey use it for roofing a temple and a hut.^[5][6]
• 6th–5th century BC – Pindar uses it for crowning victors and for covering in general.^[5][7][8]
• 5th century BC – Sophocles and Euripides use it for wreathing and crowning oneself.^[5][7][8]
• 5th–4th century BC – Aristophanes uses it for roofing houses.^[5][8]
• 4th century BC – Demosthenes uses it, its only use in Attic prose.^[5][8]
• 3rd century BC – Apollonius of Rhodes uses it for a ship covered with shields.^[7][8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To cover with a roof, roof over, thatch.^[5][7]
2. To crown, wreathe; in the middle, to crown oneself.^[5][7]
3. To cover in general.^[5][7]

Word family

• ἀμφηρεφής (amphērephḗs)
• ἔρεψις (érepsis)
• κατερέφω (kateréphō)
• κατηρεφής (katērephḗs)
• ὀροφή (orophḗ)
• ὄροφος (órophos)
• ὑψερεφής (hupserephḗs)
• ὑψηρεφής (hupsērephḗs)
• ὑψόροφος (hupsórophos)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ a b Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert
4. ^ Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
8. ^ a b c d e Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge