Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37

https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/46

Context

Aelius Herodian studied and taught language and literature (“grammar”) in Alexandria in Egypt, the intellectual and cultural center of the Roman East, before moving to Rome as a celebrated scholar later in his career. In his grammatical treatise on spelling, Herodian cited the toponym Caesarea (Καισάρεια) as an example of a particular word-formation. George Choeroboscus, the Early Byzantine grammarian, paraphrased this passage over six centuries later (Prologue and Notes 303.12-20).

Text

τὰ εἰς -α λήγοντα θηλυκά, ἐὰν μὲν ἔχῃ τὸ -α καθαρόν, τουτέστι μὴ προηγουμένου συμφώνου, ἢ πρὸ τοῦ -α τὸ ρ, ἢ μακρόν, φυλάττει καὶ ἐν τῇ γενικῇ, φημὶ δὴ τὸ -α, καὶ προσθέσει τοῦ ς ποιεῖ τὴν γενικήν. ἔστω δὲ παραδείγματα τοῦ κανόνος ταῦτα· τὸ ᾱ μὲν καθαρὸν οἷον μαῖα μαίας, γραῖα γραίας, γαῖα γαίας, Μήδεια Μηδείας (τὸ γὰρ “Μηδείης ὑπ᾿ ἔρωτι” Ἰωνικόν ἐστι), Κράτεια Κρατείας, Ἀλεξάνδρεια Ἀλεξανδρείας, Καισάρεια Καισαρείας, Ἀντιόχεια Ἀντιοχείας.1

Textual Note

Ed. Lentz 1868

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Translation

As for feminine nouns ending -a, if they have pure -a (i.e., no preceding consonant), r before -a, or long -a, it persists also in the genitive, I mean the -a, and by addition of -s makes the genitive. Take these examples of the rule: pure -a, e.g., maia-maias, graia-graias, gaia-gaias, Medeia-Medeias (since “Medeies hyp’ eroti” is Ionic dialect), Krateia-Krateias, Alexandreia-Alexandreias, Kaisareia -Kaisareias, Antiocheia-Antiocheias.

Translation Note

Trans. J. L. Rife

Discussion Note

The Greek verse “Medeies hyp’ eroti” is quoted from Apollonius of Rhodes, 3.31.

Works Cited

1 Aelius Herodianus, Grammatici Graeci III.2.1: Herodiani Technici Reliquiae, ed. August Lentz (Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1868), p: 751.25-33.

Copyright and License for Reuse

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How to Cite This Entry

Joseph L. Rife et al., “Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, last modified July 6, 2021, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/46.

Bibliography:

Joseph L. Rife et al., “Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37.” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife, Phillip I. Lieberman and David A. Michelson., edited by Joseph L. Rife et al.. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2021. Entry published July 6, 2021. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/46.

About this Entry

Entry Title: Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37

Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:

Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
Joseph L. Rife, Phillip I. Lieberman, and David A. Michelson, editors, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editors, “Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37”
Joseph L. Rife and William L. Potter, entry contributors, “Aelius Herodian, Declension of Nouns 751.25-37”

Additional Credit:

TEI encoding by William L. Potter
URNs and other metadata added by William L. Potter
Electronic text added by Joseph L. Rife
Testimonia identified by Joseph L. Rife

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