χέρνιψ

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *kʰéhrnikʷs (compare Mycenaean Greek 𐀐𐀛𐀣 (ke-ni-qa, accusative)), equivalent to χείρ (kheír, “hand”) +‎ νίζω (nízō, “to wash”).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /kʰér.nips/ → /ˈçer.nips/ → /ˈçer.nips/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /kʰér.nips/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈkʰer.nips/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈçer.nips/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈçer.nips/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈçer.nips/

Noun

χέρνιψ • (khérnips) f (genitive χέρνῐβος); third declension

1. water for washing the hands (especially before sacrifices)

Inflection

Third declension of ἡ χέρνῐψ; τῆς χέρνῐβος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ χέρνῐψ hē khérnips	τὼ χέρνῐβε tṑ khérnibe	αἱ χέρνῐβες hai khérnibes
Genitive	τῆς χέρνῐβος tês khérnibos	τοῖν χερνῐ́βοιν toîn kherníboin	τῶν χερνῐ́βων tôn kherníbōn
Dative	τῇ χέρνῐβῐ têi khérnibi	τοῖν χερνῐ́βοιν toîn kherníboin	ταῖς χέρνῐψῐ / χέρνῐψῐν taîs khérnipsi(n)
Accusative	τὴν χέρνῐβᾰ tḕn khérniba	τὼ χέρνῐβε tṑ khérnibe	τᾱ̀ς χέρνῐβᾰς tā̀s khérnibas
Vocative	χέρνῐψ khérnips	χέρνῐβε khérnibe	χέρνῐβες khérnibes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• χερνιβεῖον (khernibeîon)
• χερνίβιον (kherníbion)
• χέρνιβον (khérnibon)
• χερνιβόξεστον (khernibóxeston)
• χέρνιμμα (khérnimma)
• χερνίπτομαι (kherníptomai)

 

Further reading

• “χέρνιψ”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• χέρνιψ in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• χέρνιψ in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “χέρνιψ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • lustral idem, page 505.
  • purification idem, page 658.
  • water idem, page 967.