πηδόν

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *pēd-ó-, from *ped- (“to walk, step”), the same root of Latvian pēda (“foot”) and Lithuanian pėdà (“foot”). Semantically, the use of "foot" for "rudder" can be explained by the flat form and low position of a ship's rudder.[1]

Pronunciation

 

Noun

πηδόν • (pēdón) n (genitive πηδοῦ); second declension

  1. oar blade, hence generally, oar

Inflection

Derived terms

Descendants

  • ⇒ Byzantine Greek: *πηδώτης (*pēdṓtēs, “helmsman”)
    • → Italian: pedota, pedotta; pedoto, pedotto
      • ⇒ Italian: pilota; piloto (probably influenced by pileggiare (“to sail, navigate”)) (see there for further descendants)

References

  1. Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “πηδόν”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 1185

Further reading

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