ῥοδοδάκτυλος

Ancient Greek

FWOTD – 8 June 2016

Alternative forms

  • βροδοδάκτυλος (brododáktulos) Aeolic

Etymology

From ῥόδον (rhódon, rose) + δάκτυλος (dáktulos, finger).

Pronunciation

 

Adjective

ῥοδοδᾰ́κτῠλος • (rhododáktulos) m or f (neuter ῥοδοδᾰ́κτῠλον); second declension (chiefly Epic)

  1. rosy-fingered
    • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 23.241:
      καί νύ κ’ ὀδυρομένοισι φάνη ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς,
      kaí nú k’ oduroménoisi phánē rhododáktulos Ēṓs,
      And now rosy-fingered Dawn appeared to them as they lamented.
    • 500 BCE – 400 BCE, Bacchylides, Collected Works 19.18
    • 491 CE – 518 CE, Coluthus, Rape of Helen 99

Usage notes

In the Iliad and Odyssey, the word only appears as an epithet of Dawn, in the phrase ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς (rhododáktulos Ēṓs, rosy-fingered Dawn) at the end of a poetic line, and most frequently in the following line, which is repeated once in the Iliad and many times in the Odyssey to introduce new days in the story (for a full list of occurrences, see the citations page):

800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 1.477:
ἦμος δ’ ἠριγένεια φάνη ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς
êmos d’ ērigéneia phánē rhododáktulos Ēṓs
When rosy-fingered Dawn appeared early-born

Inflection

References

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