ἐπίαλος

ἐπίαλος, = sq., Alc.129.

ἐφῐάλτ-ης, ου, ὁ, Acol.

A

ἐπιάλτης Alc.129

, also ἐπίαλος ibid.:— nightmare, conceived as a throttling demon, Phryn.Com.1, Dsc.3.140 (pl.), Artem.2.37, Ruf. ap. Orib. 7.26.177, Str.1.2.8; pr. n. of one of the Aloidae, Il.5.385, Od.11.308, Pi.P.4.89 (Ἐπ- acc. to Sch.Od. l.c., cf. A.D.Synt.179.22), and [dialect] Att. pr. n., cf. Acl.Dion.Fr.381, IG12.950.92, etc. (Identified with ἠπιόλης by A.D.Fr.8.12 (or Apollodorus, v. Sophr.68 note); ἐπιάλτης is expld. as ῥιγοπύρετον by Suid.; popularly connected with ἐφάλλομαι, Sch.B Il.5.385, or ἐφίαλλω, EM403.32; cf. incubo.) -ία, ἡ, = γλυκυσίδη, Aët.1.84; = ἐφιαλτεία (q. v.).

Grammatical information: m. (Phryn. Kom., Dsk.),

Meaning: `nightmare' (Phryn. Kom., Dsk.) - Έφιάλτης ( Έπι-) 1. mythical PN, son of Aloeus (or of Poseidon) and Iphimedeia, famous because of his unusual greatness and strength (Ε 385, λ 308, Pi. P. 4, 89); 2. PN (Hdt. etc.).,

Other forms: also ἐπιάλτης (Alc. in Eust. 1687, 52); in the same meaning also ἠπιάλης, acc. - ητα (Sophr.), ἠπιόλης (Hdn. Gr.).

Dialectal forms: Myc. E-pi-ja-ta?

Derivatives: ἐφιαλτικός `suffering from nightmare' (Medic.), and the plant-name ἐφιάλτιον, - τία (Ps.-Dsc., Aët., because of its prophylactic use, Strömberg Pflanzennamen 90).

Origin: PG [a word of Pre-Greek origin]

Etymology: No etymology. In antiquity the name of `nightmare', which is clearly as original name of a demon identical with the mythical name (cf. Nilsson Gr. Rel. 1, 226), was connected with ἐφάλλομαι `jump (up)on somebody'; cf. ἐφιάλτης ὁ ἐπιπηδῶν H. and Fraenkel Nom. ag. 1, 33 n.1. The explanation, which is phonetically not without problems (Leumann Hom. Wörter 80 n. 45; s. also Schwyzer-Debrunner 465 n. 9 with different interpretation), must be considered as folk-etymology. The suggestion of Leumann l. c. (with Meister Dial. 1, 117), that ἐφιάλτης came from ἠπίαλος, name of a fever, through ἐπίαλος, ἐπιάλτης reshaped through folk-etymology after ἐφάλλομαι, is, acc. to Frisk, less probable because of the difference in meaning. Leumann separates the PN Έφιάλτης from that of the demon and connects it with ἐπ-ιάλλειν (but this does not explain the φ). - The forms ἠπιάλης, - όλης are based on mixing with ἠπίαλος, s. v. Other folk-etymological reshapings ( ἐφέλης, ἐπωφέλης etc.) in H. s. ἐπιάλης. If the name is identical with the noun ἠπίαλος, as Leumnn and Fur. 159, 258, 342 assume, it is Pre-Greek, which is what one might expect.

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ἠπίαλος Ephialtes

Grammatical information: m.

Meaning: `ague, ague from fever' (Thgn., Ar., Hp. etc.; on th meaning Strömberg Wortstudien 82ff.); `nightmare';

Other forms: ἐπίαλος Alc. bei EM 434, 6 (prob. after ἐπί); cf. ἠπίολος `moth' (Arist. HA 605b 14; v. l. - όλης) with ἠπιόλιον ῥιγοπυρέτιον H.

Derivatives: ἠπιαλώδης `ἠπ.-like' (Hp.), ἠπιαλέω `suffer from ἠπ.' (Ar., Arist.), ἐξ-ηπιαλόομαι `become ἠπ.' (Hp.). - ἠπίολος `moth' (Arist. HA 605b 14; v. l. - όλης) with ἠπιόλιον ῥιγοπυρέτιον H.

Origin: PG [a word of Pre-Greek origin]

Etymology: Acc. to Strömberg l.c. from ἤπιος, prop. "mild fever" a taboo-paraphrase; cf. the parallels mentioned there; an improbable hypothesis. (On - αλο- Chantraine Formation 246f.) From ἠπίαλος is ἠπίολος (better - όλης; after the nouns in - όλης) `moth' not to be separated, as is shown by the words adduced by Bugge BB 18, 166: Lith. drugỹs `(cold) fever, feverbird(?), butterfly' (to Russ. drožátь `shiver'), Alb. ethe `fever' with ethëzë "feverbird(?)", `moth'; s. further Immisch Glotta 6, 193; in folklore butterflies etc. bring fever. - Not with Vaniček a. o. (e. g. Güntert Kalypso 226f.) to Lat. vappō `moth?'. - See also on Έφιαλτης. - Given the variation α\/ο prob. a Pre-Greek word (Fur. 258, 342).

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