ὀρτυγο-μήτρα

ὀρτῠγο-μήτρα, ἡ,

A a bird which migrates with quails, perh. corncrake, landrail, Rallus crex, Cratin.246, Arist.HA 597b16, Alex.Mynd. ap. Ath. 9.393a, LXX Ex.16.13, Nu.11.31 ; ludicrously applied to Latona, the Ortygian mother (cf. Ὀρτυγία I), Ar.Av. 870.

Grammatical information: m. (f. Lyc. 401)

Meaning: `quail, Coturnix vulgaris' (Epich., IA.); also as a plant-name = στελέφουρος, `Plantago Lagopus' (Thphr.), cf. Strömberg Theophrastea 50.

Other forms: H. γόρτυξ, i.e. Ϝόρτυξ), -ῠγος (- υκος Philem. 245).

Compounds: As 1. member a.o. in ὀρτυγο-μήτρα f. "quail-mother", `corncrake, Rallux crex' (Cratin., Arist., LXX), after H. = ὄρτυξ ὑπερμεγέθης; s. Thompson Birds s.v., also Strömberg Wortstud. 23; as 2. member in φιλ-όρτυξ `quail-loving' (Pl. Ly. 212d).

Derivatives: Dimin. ὀρτύγιον n. (com.); Όρτυγία, - ίη f. old name of the island Delos and other islands (Od., Str.; Tréheux BCH 70, 560ff.), after that surname of Artemis (S.); patron. Όρτυγίων (Euboea).

Origin: IE [Indo-European] [1180] *u̯ort- `quail'; PGX [probably a word of Pre-Greek origin]

Etymology: Formed like the rare birdnames ἴβυξ, βαῖβυξ; cf. also κόκκῡξ, πτέρυξ a.o. (Chantraine Form. 397, Schwyzer 498). With Ϝόρτυξ agrees except the ending Skt. (Ved.) vártikā f., later attested as vartaka- m. `quail' with the very productive ikā- and aka-suffixes. Note also MPers. vartak `id.'. The orig. form of the word cannot be reconstructed. WP. 1, 316 w. further lit., Specht Ursprung 139, 204 a. 214, Dehò Ist. Lomb. 91, 358. - Furnée 122 points out that both the suffix and the variation κ\/γ points to a loan.

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