the cerastes

cĕrastes, ae or is, m., = kerastês (horned).

A horned serpent, the cerastes: Coluber cerastes, Linn.; Plin. 8, 23, 35, § 85; 11, 37, 45, § 126; Luc. 9, 716; Prop. 3 (4), 22, 27; Cels. 5, 27, 7;

as an attrib. of the hair of the Furies,

Stat. Th. 1, 103; 11, 65; Claud. ap. Rufin. 1, 96; id. Rapt. Pros. 2, 346.—

A kind of horned worm injurious to trees, Plin. 16, 41, 80, § 220; 17, 24, 37, § 221.—

As nom. propr.: Cĕrastae, ārum, m., acc. to the fable, a horned people in Cyprus, changed by Venus into bullocks, Ov. M. 10, 222 sq.

cĕrastes, ae or is, m., = kerastês (horned).

A horned serpent, the cerastes: Coluber cerastes, Linn.; Plin. 8, 23, 35, § 85; 11, 37, 45, § 126; Luc. 9, 716; Prop. 3 (4), 22, 27; Cels. 5, 27, 7;

as an attrib. of the hair of the Furies,

Stat. Th. 1, 103; 11, 65; Claud. ap. Rufin. 1, 96; id. Rapt. Pros. 2, 346.—

A kind of horned worm injurious to trees, Plin. 16, 41, 80, § 220; 17, 24, 37, § 221.—

As nom. propr.: Cĕrastae, ārum, m., acc. to the fable, a horned people in Cyprus, changed by Venus into bullocks, Ov. M. 10, 222 sq.

Grammatical information: n.

Meaning: `horn, for blowing and drinking', metaph. `branch (of a river), part of an army, top etc.'.

Other forms: gen. ep. *-ραος, Hdt. - ρεος, Att. - ρως, -ρᾱτος, dat. ep. -ραϊ, Hdt. -ρεϊ, Att. - ρᾳ, nom. acc. pl. ep. - ρα(α), Hp. and Att. -ρᾱτα, gen. ep. - ράων, Att. - ρῶν, -ρᾱτων, dat. -ρᾱ̆σι, ep. also - ράεσσι; late ep. gen. sg. -ρά̄ατος, n. a. pl. -ρά̄ατα (further see Schwyzer 515).

Dialectal forms: Myc. keraa \/ keraha\/ nom. pl.

Compounds: As 1. member a. o. in κερασ-φόρος `with a horn' (trag.), also κερατο-φόρος `id.' (Arist.); κεραο-ξόος `polishing horn' (Δ 110, AP; on the euphonically determined thematic vowel Schwyzer 440, Sommer Nominalkomp. 20 n. 2), thematically reshaped e. g. in κερο-φόρος (E.), also κερε-αλκής `with strong horn' (A. R.; cf. Schwyzer 440). As 2. member mostly - κερως (m. f.) \< - κερα(σ)-ος in ὑψί-, ἄ-κερως etc.; with special feminine form ὑψι-, καλλι-κέραν acc. (B.; Sommer 20 n. 1); quite isolated -κέρᾱτος, e. g. ἀ-κέρατος (Pl., Arist.; τῆς ἀκεράτου beside την ἀκέρων Pl. Plt. 265b, c), also ἀ-κέρωτος (AP), - κερος e. g. in νή-κεροι pl. `hornless' (Hes. Op. 529); with the subst. δί-κερας n. `double horn' (Callix.) and, as plant names, αἰγό-, βού-, ταυρό-κερας n. (after the form of the fruit, Strömberg Pflanzennamen 54); also αἰγο-κέρως `Capricornus' with metrically conditioned gen. - κερῆος (Arat., Q. S.; cf. Bosshardt Die Nom. auf - ευς 64).

Derivatives: Diminutives: κεράτιον `little horn' (Arist., hell.), `name of a weight a. a coin, "carat" (Hero) = Lat. siliqua (inscr. and pap.); τὰ κεράτια `the fruits of the carob-tree' (Ev. Luc. 15, 16, Dsc.); from there κερατία f. `carob-tree' (Str., Plin.), also - τέα (pap., Gp.; after the tree names in - έα), κερωνία `id.' (Thphr., Plin.; as βρυωνία a. o.; Chantraine Formation 207f.), from cross κερατωνία `id.' (Gal., Aët.). Further substantives: κερασ-τής m. `horned being' (S., E.; of ἔλαφος, Πάν etc.), name of a snake, `Cerastes cornutus' (Nic. a. o.), f. - στίς (A).; cf. Fraenkel Nom. ag. 2, 209; also surname of the island of Cyprus (Hdn. 1, 104, 15: " ἀπὸ τοῦ πολλὰς ἄκρας ἔχειν"); κερατῖτις ( μήκων) `kind of poppy' (Thphr., Dsc.; Redard Les noms grecs en - της 72f.); κεραΐτης m. = Lat. cornicularius (Lyd. Mag.), κεραϊ̃τις f. "Hornpflanze" = τῆλις a. o. (Redard 41 and 72, Strömberg Pflanzennamen 54); however κεραΐτης and κεραϊ̃τις belong rather to κεραία (s. below); κερατίας m. name of Dionysos (D. S.), also name of a comet (Plin.; Scherer Gestirnnamen 107); κεραία f. name of several hornlike objects, e. g. `yard, beam, cornucopia', as sign of writing = Lat. apex (Att., hell.); dimin. κερᾳδιον (Attica, Delos; or κεραΐδιον?); κερατών, - ῶνος m. name of an altar on Delos (hell.; prop. "place adorned with horns"; after the place names in - ών). - Adjectives: κεράτινος `made of horn' (X., Pl. Com.), κερατίνης m. `the fallacy called the Horns' (D. L., Luc.); κερατώδης `hornlike' (Thphr.); κερόεις `horned' (Anakr., Simon.); κερέϊνος `id.' (Aq., Sm.). - Denomin. verb: 1. κερατίζω `but with the horns' (LXX); from there κερατιστής (LXX), κεράτισις (Apollod. Poliork.); κερατισμός `loss on excange of solidi in ceratia' as if from κερατίζω *`change in ceratia' (pap. VI^p, Lyd. Mag.); 2. κερατόω `change in horn' (Ael.); 3. κεράω `provide with horns' (Arat.), `form a wing' (Plb.). - On κεραός, κεραΐς, κεράμβυξ, κερανίξαι, κερουτιάω, κέρνα s. vv.

Origin: IE [Indo-European] [574] *ḱer-h₂(e)s- `horn, head'

Etymology: Beside κέρας `horn' stands in κάρᾱ, κάρηνα `head' a reduced grade *καρασ- (\< *ḱerh₂-es-), in κρᾱνίον `skull' a zero grade *κρᾱσ- (\< ḱr̥h₂s-); on the meaning s. below. A zero grade also in Skt. śíras- n. `head' (\< *ḱr̥h₂es-); Av. sarah- n. `head' is polyinterpr.); zero grade in gen. śīrṣ-ṇ-ás (\< *ḱr̥h₂s-nos; κρά̄ατος \< *ḱr̥h₂s-n̥-tos, cf. on κάρᾱ). The full grade with e- in Lat. cerebrum `brain' (IE. *ḱerh₂(e)s-ro-m \> * keras-ro-m). - The s-stem has an u-complement in κερα(Ϝ)-ός (s. v.); further there is an n-fomation in Germ., e. g. NHG Horn, Lat. corn-ū, Skt. śŕ̥ṇ-g-am `horn'. Full discussion in Nussbaum, Head and Horm, 1986. The original meaning was prob. `horn, Gehörn', from where `horned animal-head' and `head in gen.' - Further forms s. on κάρᾱ, κρᾱνίον, κρήδεμνον, κράνος; also W.-Hofmann s. cerebrum and cornū.

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