Termantica

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Termantica grece calefactoria nam termos grece calidus inde terme dicte loca subterranea calida.


Apparatus:

Termantica AC e | Termanticha B f | Termatica j
termos AC | thermos B ejp | thirsinos? f
{calidus} ms. p adds an attempt to write θερμός /thermós/ in Greek script
subterranea AC efp | -teran- B | subterrena j


Translation:

Termantica is Greek for Latin calefactoria {"capable of heating"}, for Greek termos is Latin calidus {"warm"}; from this comes the word terme for subterranean hot springs.


Commentary:

Termantica:
θερμαντικός /thermantikós/ means "warming, heating" and is often used e.g. in the Greek Dioscorides to characterise certain herbs as having δύναμις θερμαντική /dýnamis thermatikḗ/, or in the Longobardic translation: virtus termantica - a "warming quality/property". Simon translates the Greek term with calefactoria, literally meaning "hot making". Grammatically termantica and calefactoria could be nom. fem. sg. or nom. neut. pl.

Simon rightly derives the word from Greek θερμός /thermós/ with its basic meaning "hot". Simon quotes a further derivation from this root: θέρμαι /thérmai/, Latinized thermae "hot springs".

Greek Θ,θ theta was already pronounced by Greek native speakers like "th", as in English "thought", a sound that also occurs in Arabic. This sound is routinely represented by Simon with the letter "t", and /t/ is most likely the sound Simon used as a substitute for this Greek sound foreign to him. Simon's transcription also shows a late Greek sound change from αι > ε {/ai/ > /e/}, resulting in his terme.


WilfGunther 25/12/2012


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