αματεσ

Pre-Samnite

Etymology

Possibly from Proto-Italic *amō, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃emh₃-. Perhaps cognate with Marrucinian amatens and Latin amō (“to love”).

Verb

αματεσ (amates) (third person plural perfect)[a]

  1. (hapax legomenon) The meaning of this term is uncertain. Possibilities include: to take, want, decree.[b]
    • Discovered in 1991, Sacred Law from Tortora [1]:
      [ε?]κ[υ?]ρε[κτ?]ισυμαδαματεσ[-
      [e?]k[u?]re[kt?]isumadamates[-
      [thus?] they [very rightly?] decreed

Notes

  1. ^ The linguist Paolo Poccetti argues that the term is likely the masculine or neuter genitive singular form of a passive participle. However, Matteo Calabarese argues that it is likely the third person plural perfect form of a -t(t)- perfect form.
  2. ^ Calabrese reconstructs the prior word (see quotation) as "*[ρεκτ]ισυμαδ (*[rekt]isumad, “very rightly”)," leading them to compare the phrase to the Latin saying "rectissime placuit" ("it pleased very rightly"). Calabrese argues the Pre-Samnite text likely means "[they] have decreed very rightly."

References

  1. ^ Matteo Calabrese (2021) “The sacred law from Tortora”, in Latomus‎[1] (in Pre-Samnite), volume 80, Société d’études latines de Bruxelles, →DOI
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