smicre

Grammatical information: adj.

Meaning: `small, short, little'; on the meaning and use (beside ὀλίγος) in poetry Moorhouse Class. Quart. 41, 31 ff. (E 801, γ 296, Trag., Att.);

Other forms: also σμικρός (P 757, Hes. Op. 361, Ion., trag., Att.), μικκός (Dor. Boeot.), μικός (Att. inscr. IV^a, Trag. Adesp. 31, pap.).

Compounds: Very often as 1. member, esp. in scient. and techn. language.

Derivatives: Diminut. and hypocor.: μικύλος (Mosch. 1, 13); μικύ-θινον τὸ μικρόν καὶ νήπιον H.; *μικκιχος (cf. ὁσσίχος a.o. Chantraine Form. 404) in Lac. μικκιχιδδόμενος `under age' (inscr.; from *μικκιχίζομαι; cf. Schwyzer 331); cf. also the PN below. Abstract: ( σ)μικρότης f. `trigle, insignificance' (Anaxag., Pl.). Denomin.: ( σ)μικρύνω, also with prefix, esp. κατα-, `diminish, reduce, degrade' (Demetr. Eloc., LXX); κατασμικρίζω `id.' (Arist., Phld.), σμικρίζεσθαι διαττᾶσθαι H.; ἀποσμικρόω `id.' (Tim. Lex.). -- PN, e.g. Σμικρίνης m. "niggard" (Men.; as Αἰσχίνης etc.), Μίκων, Μικίων, Μίκυθος, - ίων, Σμικυθίων (Leumann Hom. Wörter 155 A. 129, Schulze Kl. Schr. 671).

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

Etymology: On σμικρος (older) and μικρός with unexplained initial change Schwyzer 310f.; the ρ-suffix may come from the opposite μακρός (cf. Güntert Reimwortbildungen 160); diff. Bloomfield Lang. 1, 94: μικ-ρό-ς: μικ-υ-θός old ro: u-variation[improbable, s. below]. Through expressive gemination arose μικκός, and to this, with normal simplification of the κ, μικός. -- Without agreement outside Greek. One can compare on the one hand Lat. mīca `crumb, corn, a little' (might stand for * smīk-ā), on the other hand Germ. words for `small' with IE ē-vowel, e.g. OHG smāhi `small, little, low' with smāhen `reduce', NHG schmähen; one might bring together these forms under IE smē[i]k-: smīk-. Further there are adj. for `graceful, elegant' with IE g, e.g. OE smicre `elegant, nice', Lith. su-smìžęs `small, crippled'. The varying form is with a word of this meaning not surprising; on the symbolic character of the i (against α in μακρός) Sieberer Sprache 2, 118 n. 73 (p. 119).-- The connection with the comparativ μείων, with the κ taken from the opposite μακρός (Seiler Steigerungsformen 115), fails because of the clearly older σμικρός, which cannot be combined with μείων (to Skt. minā́ti `reduce' etc.). -- More material WP. 2, 685f., Pok. 966f., W.-Hofmann s. mīca. - The varying initial points rather to a Pre-Greek word.

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