δέχομαι

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Word-form

δεξιός

Transliteration (Word)

dexios

English translation (word)

on the right hand

Transliteration (Etymon)

dekhomai

English translation (etymon)

to receive

Author

Herodian

Century

2 AD

Reference

De prosodia catholica, Lentz III/1, p. 124

Edition

A. Lentz, Grammatici graeci vol. 3/1, Leipzig, 1870

Source

Arcadius

Ref.

De prosodia catholica (epitome), p. 45

Ed.

S. Roussou, Pseudo-Arcadius' Epitome of Herodian's De Prosodia Catholica, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018

Quotation

(Arcadius) <προπαροξυτονεῖται> Ἔτι καὶ τὰ ἀπὸ μέλλοντος γινόμενα· ὀρθώσομαι ὀρθώσιος, ἀσπάσομαι ἀσπάσιος, φυλάξομαι φυλάξιος. τὸ μέντοι πλήσω πλησίος καὶ τὸ δέξομαι δεξιός καὶ ἕψομαι ἀνεψιός.

Translation (En)

Are proparoxytone… And words derived from the future, too: orthōsomai "I will correct", orthōsios "correcting", aspasomai "I will welcome" aspasios "welcome", phulaxomai "I will guard" phulaxios "guarding". But not plēsō "I will come near" plēsios "near" and dexomai "I will receive" dexios "on the right hand" and hepsomai "I will follow" anepsios "cousin"

Comment

Derivational functional etymology, starting from the future form. It was designed for δεξιά "the right hand", and then applied to the adjective δεξιός. The right hand is the receiver since most human beings are right-handed. This etymology is no doubt older than Herodian, but this is the first clear and unambiguous formulation of it. In our sources, this explanation is mostly provided for δεξιά, less frequently for δεξιός. The Gudianum assumes a different derivation, *δέχομαι → *δεχιά → δεξιά, not involving the future. A variant of this etymology derives δεξιά from the verbal adjective δεκτός "acceptable" (Etym. Magnum, Et. Symeonis, Ps.-Zonaras) or from the agent noun δεκτής (Iamblichus)

Parallels

Herennius Philo, De diversis verborum significationibus, lambda 113 (δέξασθαι δὲ τὸ παρά τινος προτεινόμενον· καὶ ἐσχημάτισται παρὰ τὴν δεξιάν, ἡ δ’ αὐτὴ δεξιὰ παρὰ τὸ δέξασθαι [corrupt. See Etym. Gudianum, lambda, p. 359, and Eustathius, Comm. Od., vol. 1, p. 31]); Herodian, Peri rhēmatikōn onomatōn, Lentz III/2, p. 899 (τὸ μέντοι πλήσω πλησίος καὶ τὸ δέξομαι δεξιός καὶ ἕψομαι ἀνεψιός); Iamblichus, Protrepticus, p. 117 (τὴν δεξιὰν τῶν χειρῶν ἐντιμοτέραν ὠνόμασαν οὐ μόνον ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ δεκτὴν ὑπάρχειν ἐν τῷ μεταδιδόναι); Orion, Etymologicum, delta, p. 46 (Δεξιά. ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ αὐτῆς τὰ διδόμενα· ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς τὰς πλείας διεξιέναι πράξεις); Orion, Etymologicum (excerpta e cod. Darmstadino 2773), delta, p. 613 (δεξιᾶ ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς <δ>έχεσθαι τὰ διδόμενα [the ms has τρέχεσθαι]); Meletius, De natura hominis, p. 124 (δεξιὰ δὲ λέγεται ἡ ἕτερα, ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ αὐτῆς τὰ διδόμενα ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πλεῖστον· ἢ οἷον δεξιὰ, ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς τὰς πλείονας διεξιέναι πράξεις); Choeroboscus, Epimerismi in Psalmos, p. 125 (Δεξιὰ, παρὰ τοῦ δέχω τὸ λαμβάνω, ἡ ἐπιτήδειος πρὸς τὸ δέχεσθαι); Epimerismi homerici Îl. 1.501b (δεξιτερῇ: δεξιὰ εἴρηται, ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ αὐτῆς τὸν ἄνθρωπον τὰ διδόμενα. ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς τὰς πλείονας διεξιέναι πράξεις ἤπερ διὰ τῆς ἀριστερᾶς); Lexicon (fragmentum) (forte auctore Nicephoro Gregora) 52 (Λαμβάνει τις τόδε μηδενὸς διδόντος, δέχεται δὲ παρά του. ὅθεν καὶ δεξιά); Etym. Gudianum, delta, p. 345 (Δεξιά <Jo. Damasc. Can. iamb. 2, 5>· παρὰ τὸ δεῖξιν αὐτὴν εἶναι· δι’ αὐτῆς γὰρ δεικνύομεν τὰ ζητούμενα. ἢ παρὰ τὸ δέχω δεχιά καὶ δεξιά, ἡ πρὸς τὸ δέχεσθαι ἐπιτήδειος οὖσα); ibid., lambda, p. 359 (Λαβεῖν καὶ δέξασθαι διαφέρει· λαβεῖν μὲν γάρ ἐστι τὸ ἀνελέσθαι ἀπὸ τοῦ μηδὲν διδόντος· δέξασθαι δὲ τὸ παρά τινος προστινόμενον δέξασθαι· καὶ ἐσχηματίσθαι παρὰ τὴν δεξιὰν τῇ αὐτῇ δεξιᾷ); Etym. Gudianum Additamenta, delta, p. 346 (Δεξιτερή· εἴρηται ἡ δεξιὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ αὐτῆς τὸν ἄνθρωπον τὰ διδόμενα, ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς διεξιέναι τὰς πλείονας πράξεις ἤπερ διὰ τῆς ἀρι⟦στερᾶς⟧); Eustathius, Comm. Il., vol. 1, p. 357 (Πρωτότυπον δὲ τῆς τοιαύτης ἐννοίας τὸ δέχω, ἐξ οὗ καὶ τὸ δέχθαι καὶ τὸ δειδέχθαι καὶ τὸ δειδέχατο, ἔτι δὲ καὶ τὰ τῆς δεξιώσεως. δέχω γάρ· οὗ μέλλων δέξω· ὅθεν δέξα, ὡς δόξα, καὶ πλεονασμῷ τοῦ ι δεξιά, ὡς ἀχυρμιά καὶ πυρκαϊά· καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ ῥῆμα δεξιῶ καὶ τὰ ἐκεῖθεν); Eustathius, Comm. Od., vol. 1, p. 31 (εἰς δὲ τὸ περὶ δεξιᾶς καὶ τὸ κατ’ αὐτὴν σέμνωμα, συντελεῖ τι καὶ ὁ γράψας ὅτι καὶ τὸ δέξασθαι, παρὰ τὴν δεξιὰν ἐλέχθη. φησὶ γὰρ ὅτι λαβεῖν μὲν, τὸ ἀνελέσθαί τι μὴ διδόντος τινός. οἷον. ἀλλὰ σύ γ’ ἐν χερσὶ λάβ’ αἰγίδα θυσανόεσσαν, δέξασθαι δὲ, τὸ παρά τινος προτεινομένου χειρίσασθαι. καὶ ἐσχημάτισταί φησι, παρὰ τὴν δεξιάν); ibid., p. 145 (Ἐν τούτοις δὲ κεῖται ὡς καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ, τὸ δείκνυσθαι ἀντὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦσθαι, ἀπὸ τοῦ δέκω δέξω ὅθεν καὶ ἡ δεξιά); Etym. Magnum, Kallierges, p. 256 (Δεξιά: Ἡ χείρ· καὶ ὁ ποιητὴς δεξιτερὴ λέγει· ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ αὐτῆς τὰ διδόμενα· ἢ διεξιά τις οὖσα, ἀπὸ τοῦ τὰς πλείονας δι’ αὐτῆς διεξιέναι πράξεις. Καὶ παρωνύμως, δεξιὸς, ὁ ἐπιτήδειος καὶ αἴσιος. Ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ δεκτὸς, δεξιὰ, ὡς ἀνόρεκτος, ἀνορεξία· εὔθηκτος, εὐθηξία); ibid., p. 259 (Δέχομαι: Εἴρηται παρὰ τὴν δεξιάν· κυρίως γὰρ δέχεσθαι τὸ ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ λαβεῖν λέγεται); Etym. Symeonis, delta 126 (Δεξιά· ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι δι’ ἑαυτῆς τὰ διδόμενα· ἢ διεξιά τις οὖσα, ἀπὸ τοῦ δι’ αὐτῆς διεξιέναι τὰς πλείονας πράξεις. Ὡς παρὰ ὠνόμασθαι δεξιὸς ὁ ἐπιτήδειος καὶ αἴσιος· ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ δεκτὸς δεξιά, ὡς ἀνορεκτός ἀνορεξία, εὔθηκτος εὐθηξία); Ps.-Zonaras, Lexicon, delta, p. 480 (Δεξιά. ἡ χείρ. καὶ ποιητικῶς δεξιτερή. ἀπὸ τοῦ δέχεσθαι αὐτῆς τὰ διδόμενα. [ἢ δεξιὰ τὶς οὖσα, ἀπὸ τοῦ τὰς πλείονας δι’ αὐτῆς ἐξιέναι πράξεις. καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ δεκτὸς δεξιὰ, ὡς ἀνόρεκτος, ἀνορεξία.])

The etymology may be implicit in Alexis, fr. 73 Kock οὐδὲ ῥόαν γλυκεῖαν ἐκ τῆς δεξιᾶς / δέξαιτ’ ἂν αὐτῶν. The instances of δεξιᾷ δέχεσθαι are many, but not all of them are intended as etymological puns

Modern etymology

Δεξιός is the old inherited adjective meaning "on the right hand", from *deksi-wó-, with cognates in most IE languages. It is indeed derived from *dek̑- "to receive" (Beekes, EDG)

Persistence in Modern Greek

Yes

Entry By

Le Feuvre