A grammar of the Homeric dialect - Wilbourhall.org

I08 NOUN FORMATION. [ll6.
itive Masculines in -rrj-s, which are Nouns of the Agent, can
generally be distinguished from the Denominatives in -TTJS
( 117) : e. g. ayoprjrris a speaker, but vavrris a ship-man.
9. Abstract Nouns in -TI, -at are barytone in -TU ; oxytone.
It will be seen that, roughly speaking, when the Verbal Stem is in the
weak form, the Suffix is accented, and vice versa : also that words with an
active meaning (applicable to a personal agenf) are oxytone, those with a
passive meaning (expressing the thing done) are barytone.
116.] Gender. The Gender of Nouns is determined in most
cases by the Suffix. The following rules do not apply to Compounds,
as to which see 125.
1 . Stems in -o are Masc. or Neut., with some exceptions, as
obos, arapiros, KeAeuflos, vrjaos, (frrjyos, aju/TreAo?, vocros, ratypos,
\lsf)(pos, 0-77080?, \l/dij,a8os, pa/35o?, SOKO'J, pivos, TT/OO'-XOOJ.
In
these the change of gender seems to be due to the meaning.
K\VTOS is used as a Fern, in II. 2.
742 K\VTOS 'iTTTroSa/^eta. In
Od. 4. 406 TriKpbv a-JTOTrveiovo-ai, . . objjnjv
it is best to take
TTLKpov as an adverb, not with 68ju?jy
:
cp.
II. 6. 182.
FIvAo? has the two epithets fffjLaOoeis
and TjyaOer],
and is probably
therefore of both Genders.
2. Stems in -TJ (for -a) are mainly Fern. ;
but
Stems in
-TTJ denoting an agent are Masc., as SeK-rrj-s a
beggar, alyj^r)-Tr\-s a warrior. Also, iropKrj-s the ring of a spear,
Tr]-s comrade, rajuu?]-s dispenser, verjvirj-s a youth, perhaps ayyeA-
117-9
a messenger ; also the proper names Bo/>ea-?, 'Ep/xeuz-s,
Alvfta-$, A^yeta-9, Tet/oecrta-?, 'Ay^to-?]-?, 'Afity-s.
The Masc. Nouns in -as, -r]s are probably formed originally
from Feminine abstract or collective Nouns in -a, -TJ.
The first
step is the use of the word as a concrete : cp. Od. 22. 209
6/^A.iKtT) 8e /xot eo-o-t thou art one of the same age (6/xrpuf) with me ;
II. 12. 213 brjjjiov
eovra leing one of the common people. So in
Latin magistrates, potestas (Juv.
10. ico), optio : English a
relation (
= a, relative).
The next step is the change to the Masc.,
which leads to the use of the Endings -TJS,
Gen. -ao on the
analogy of the Masc. -05, Gen. -oio. We may compare Fr.
un trompette bearer of a trumpet, Italian il podesta the magistrate,
where the change of meaning is marked by the gender only.
So errj-s is probably from a word crfe-rrj kindred, from
vtrjvirj-s
a Fern, verfvirj youth, ayyt\(-r\-