stьblь

Grammatical information: n.

Meaning: `crowd packed closely together, troop of warriors, ships etc.' (Hdt., A., Ar., Th., X. etc.).

Derivatives: Besides στιφρός `packed closely together, tight, compact' (Ar., X., Arist., hell. a. late) with - ότης f. `compactness' (middl. com.), - άω `to harden' (Ath., Eust.).

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

Etymology: With στῖφος: στιφρός cf. e.g. αἶσχος: αἰσχρός, κῦδος: κυδρός. To the family of στείβω with vowellength as in στί̄βη `hoarfrost'; without direct agreement outside Greek. An IE aspirate (= Gr. φ) is prob. also found in some semantically deiviating Balto-Slav. words, e.g. Lith. stíebas `mast(tree), pillar, stalk', stáibis `lower shank, supporting post' [note that the Baltic acute points to a b, not bh], OCS stьblь, Russ. stébelь `stalk', thus in Skt. stibhi- m. `bunch of flowers, bundle'. Further s. στείβω; cf. στριφνός. -- From στῖφος Lat. * stīpus in stīpāre? (Thierfelder by letter). -- From στείβω neither the φ not the vowellength can be explained. So the word must be Pre-Greek.

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