ὀφνίς

Ancient Greek

Etymology

It can be identified with Old Prussian wagnis (“coulter, ploughshare”), from Proto-Indo-European *wogʷʰni- (“coulter”). Beside this stands Latin vōmer (“ploughshare”), from an unclear base form. It is probable that ὄφατα (óphata, “ties of the plough”) also belongs here.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /oˈɸnis/ → /oˈfnis/

• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /oˈpʰnis/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /oˈɸnis/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /oˈfnis/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /oˈfnis/

Noun

ὀφνίς • (ophnís)

1. (hapax) ploughshare; plough

   Synonyms: ὕνις (húnis); ἄροτρον (árotron)

   • [5th c. C.E., Hesychius of Alexandria, Γλώσσαι, Ο:

     ὀφνίς· ὕννις, ἄροτρον

     ophnís; húnnis, árotron

     ophnís: ploughshare, plough]

References

• “ὀφνίς”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN