Bechas

From Simon Online
Jump to: navigation, search

Bechas Cassius felix capitulo de tussi humida antiquas inquit tusses quas greci chronicas bechas vocant et cetera. Inde xerobechas tussis arida et inde pillule bechichie que ad tussim fiunt.


Apparatus:

In ms. f this entry shares its initial with the previous entry Bebongi.
Bechas ABC ef | Bethas j | Betha p
inquit | inquid p
chronicas bechas AC | crhonas bechas B | Xroronas beccas e | cronas bochas f | chronas betas j | cronas bechas p
xerobechas B ep | exrobechas AC {printer's error} | xcrobechias f {'e' misread as 'c'} | xirobechas j
arida | arrida jp
pillule (pill’e B) bechichie ABC | pille? bichichie e | pille bikichie f | pill’e bichichie j | pill’e bichechie p
fiunt | faciũt ms. e


Translation:

Bechas. Cassius Felix in his chapter on moist cough speaks of the long-standing coughs the Greeks call chronic bechas, etc.; furthermore of xerobechas, which is dry cough, and also of the bechichie pills, which are made for fighting cough.


Commentary:

Bechas:
In this entry Simon quotes forms of the Greek word for "cough" taken from Cassius Felix, his source, who constantly mentions Greek medical terminology. Bechas is the acc. pl. βῆχας /bēkhas/ of the Greek word nom., gen. sg. βήξ, βηχός /bḗx, bēkhós/ "cough". The chapter he quotes is Cassius Felix's De Medicina: 33, ed. Fraisse (2001: 78ff). Ad tussim humidam "On moist cough"; also available online in the Rose edition (1979: 68) [[1]].

Unlike Cassius, Simon for once does not mention the Greek term for "moist cough" ὑγρόβηξ /hygróbēx/. In this chapter Cassius speaks (2001: 80) of: catapotia tussicularia quae Graeci bechica uocant "cough pills which the Greeks call bechica", which Simon rewrites as: pillule bechichie id., βηχικóς /bēkhikós/ being simply an adjectival form meaning "suffering from cough; good for cough".

Further quotes by Simon from this chapter are based on Cassius' statement: Graeci chronias bechas uocant (2001: 81) "the Greeks call it 'chronic coughs'", where Cassius transliterates the Greek acc. pl. χρóνιας βῆχας /khrónias bēkhas/; cf. Simon: chronicas bechas. The text of these excerpts is available online (Rose ed. 1879: 70) [[2]].

Simon also alludes to the next chapter in the same book: XXXIV. Ad tussim aridam "On dry cough", (2001: 82ff). where Cassius says: Tussis arida a Graecis xerobeches appellatur. "Dry coughs are called xerobeches by the Greeks", which transliterates ξηρόβηξ /xēróbēx/ "dry cough", also online p. 72 [[3]].


WilfGunther 28/02/2014


See also: Xerobiche, Bichy, Bichycon


Next entry