ἵημι

Forms

ῑ̔́ημῐ (hī́ēmi) ^[1] Mycenaean Greek i-je-si and i-je-to are forms of this verb, read hiensi and hietoi.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *yīyēmi,^[1] inherited from Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁- (“to throw”), with a reduplicated present.^[1][2] Greek kept the old reduplicated athematic present, while Latin made a new one, Latin iaciō (“to throw”).^[2] The Greek aorist in -k- matches the Latin perfect iēcī, as ἔθηκα (éthēka) matches fēcī: an archaic formation with a k-extension.^[2] Peters showed that Aristophanes consistently has a long first vowel, which points to *Hi-Hyeh₁-mi with an initial laryngeal.^[2]

In Anatolian, Old Hittite pe-iezzi (“sends away”) and u-iezzi (“sends here”) contain prefixes and keep the old meaning.^[2][1] A link with Hittite iya- (“to do, make”) has also been proposed, but Kloekhorst objects to it.^[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is already on the Mycenaean tablets.^[2] Its first passage in the GLAUx corpus is Iliad 1.48;^[3] in Homer it means to let fly a missile (an arrow, a spear, a stone), to throw or let fall, and to send forth the voice.^[4][5]

Semantic evolution

From “to set in motion, let go” came the uses with sounds and speech: to utter words, to speak a language,^[4][6] and Herodotus says “to speak Greek” with it (9.16).^[4][6] In the 5th century BC it was also used of driving flocks, launching a ship, and of hurling oneself from a height.^[4]

Many of its forms occur only with prefixes, and its compounds took on senses of their own: ἀφίημι (aphíēmi, “to let go”), ἀνίημι (aníēmi, “to send up, relax”), συνίημι (suníēmi, “to bring together; to understand”).^[2] Its derivatives, almost all from the compounds, include σύνεσις (súnesis, “understanding”) and συνετός (sunetós, “intelligent”).^[2]

Timeline

• Mycenaean period – Forms of the verb appear on the Linear B tablets.^[2]
• Homer – The Iliad uses it for letting fly a missile and sending forth the voice.^[3][4]
• 6th century BC – Solon uses it for uttering speech.^[4][7]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it with γλῶσσα for speaking a language.^[6][7]
• 5th–4th century BC – Aristophanes always scans its first vowel long.^[2][7]

Meanings

Verb

1. To let fly, launch a missile (an arrow, a spear, a stone, lightning); to throw, shoot.^[4]
2. To throw, cast, fling a person or thing in some direction.^[4]
3. To set in motion, drive (flocks); to launch a ship; to release hunting dogs.^[4]
4. To set oneself or a part of one's body in motion.^[4]
5. (of a driver) To set one's course, aim for a place.^[4]
6. To let fall (a sword, tears); to let go, release.^[4]
7. To send forth sounds; to utter speech, to speak a language.^[4][6]
8. To make rivers flow.^[4]

Word family

• ἀνίημι (aníēmi)
• ἀφίημι (aphī́ēmi)
• ἐνίημι (enī́ēmi)
• ἐξίημι (exī́ēmi)
• ἐφίημι (ephíēmi)
• καθίημι (kathíēmi)
• μεθίημι (methíēmi)
• παρίημι (paríēmi)
• προσίημι (prosíēmi)
• συνίημι (sunī́ēmi)
• ὑφίημι (huphíēmi)

Related words

• ἑσία (hesía)
• ἕσις (hésis)
• ἑσμός (hesmós)
• ἑτός (hetós)
• ἵεσις (híesis)
• Latin iaciō

Usage notes

Cunliffe files the Homeric middle ἵεμαι (híemai) “to press on, be eager”, which began with a digamma, under a separate head.^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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 Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
5. ^ a b Cunliffe, Richard John (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, London: Blackie and Son
6. ^ a b c d Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge