κάνναβις

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

κάνναβος (kánnabos)

Etymology

A Kulturwort or Wanderwort of unknown ultimate origin:

perhaps Scythian or Thracian^[1] (according to a remark made by Herodotus, that Scythians and Thracians knew the plant^[2])
or possibly “belonging to the pre-Indo-European agricultural layer”.^[3] A proposal going back to Schrader derives the word from Proto-Finno-Ugric *kana-pis: compare Eastern Mari кыне́ (kyńé), Western Mari кӹне (kÿńe, “hemp”) and Komi-Permyak пыш (pyš), Udmurt пыш (pyš, “hemp”),^[4]^[5] but Finno-Ugricists deny the existence of such a compound.^[6]

Compare (within the Indo-European language family) Albanian kërp, Old Armenian կանեփ (kanepʻ), կանափ (kanapʻ),^[7] Proto-Slavic *konopь,^[2]^[6] Lithuanian kanãpė, Latvian kaņepe, Old Prussian knapios, Proto-Germanic *hanapiz (> English hemp),^[3] Middle Persian [script needed] (kʾnb /⁠kā̆naβ⁠/), Persian (kanab), (kanav), (kanaf, “kenaf”),^[8] Northern Kurdish kinif,^[9] Sogdian 𐼸𐼷‎𐼻𐼾𐼰 (ky‎npʾ /⁠kēnapā⁠/),^[10] Khwarezmian 𐾻𐾾𐾲-𐾺𐾾𐾻 (knβ-ynk), Ossetian гӕн (gæn), гӕнӕ (gænæ), Khotanese 𐨐𐨎𐨱 (kaṃha), 𐨐𐨂𐨎𐨦𐨌 (kuṃbā),^[11] Wakhi kəm,^[12] perhaps also to Sanskrit शण (śaṇá), Middle Persian [script needed] (šn' /⁠šan⁠/), the satem variants of the same etymon, and to Sanskrit भाङ्ग (bhāṅga), Persian (bang), the reverse forms of it (due to a taboo).

Compare further Neo-Assyrian Akkadian 𒋆𒄣𒌦𒈾𒁍 (qunnabu), Classical Syriac ܩܢܦܐ (qnpʾ),^[3] Arabic قِنَّب (qinnab), Georgian კანაფი (ḳanapi), Svan ქან (kan), Mingrelian კიფი (ḳipi), Laz კერფი (ǩerpi), Adyghe кӏэп (kʼɛp), Kabardian щӏэп (śʼɛp), Abkhaz ақәны (akʷnə), Eastern Mari кыне (kyńe), Karakalpak [script needed] (kenep), Turkish kendir. The interrelationship of all these forms is disputed.

More at Etymology of cannabis.

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /kán.na.bis/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈkan.na.bis/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈkan.na.βis/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈkan.na.vis/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈka.na.vis/

Noun

κάννᾰβῐς • (kánnăbĭs) f (genitive καννάβῐος or καννάβεως or καννάβῐδος); third declension

(uncountable) hemp (Cannabis sativa)
Synonym: θᾰλᾰσσαίγλη (thălăssaíglē)
(countable) hemp seed

Declension

Third declension of ἡ κάνναβῐς; τῆς καννάβῐος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular
Nominative	ἡ κάνναβῐς hē kánnabĭs
Genitive	τῆς καννάβῐος / καννάβεως tês kannábĭos / kannábeōs
Dative	τῇ καννάβει tēî kannábei
Accusative	τὴν κάνναβῐν tḕn kánnabĭn
Vocative	κάνναβῐ kánnabĭ
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Third declension of ἡ κάνναβῐς; τῆς καννάβῐδος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Plural
Nominative	ἡ κάνναβῐς hē kánnabĭs	αἱ καννάβῐδες hai kannábĭdes
Genitive	τῆς καννάβῐδος tês kannábĭdos	τῶν κανναβῐ́δων tôn kannabĭ́dōn
Dative	τῇ καννάβῐδῐ tēî kannábĭdĭ	ταῖς καννάβῐσῐ / καννάβῐσῐν taîs kannábĭsĭ(n)
Accusative	τὴν καννάβῐδᾰ tḕn kannábĭdă	τᾱ̀ς καννάβῐδᾰς tā̀s kannábĭdăs
Vocative	κάνναβῐς kánnabĭs	καννάβῐδες kannábĭdes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension. Nominative singular -ς (-s) arose by reduction of the original cluster *-ds.

Derived terms

κανναβάριος (kannabários)
καννάβινος (kannábinos)
καννάβιον (kannábion)
κανναβίς (kannabís)
κανναβισθῆναι (kannabisthênai)
κανναβίσκα (kannabíska)

Descendants

Greek: κάνναβη (kánnavi)
- → Aromanian: cãnavi
→ Latin: cannabis, cannaba, cannabum, cannabus, canapa, canapis, canapus, canava, canva (Late Latin, Vulgar Latin) (see there for further descendants)

References

^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “κάνναβις”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), volume I, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 636-7
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “конопля”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 Kroonen, Guus (2013) “hanipa-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11)‎^[1], Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN
^ Schrader, Otto (1901) Reallexikon der indogermanischen Altertumskunde: Grundzüge einer Kultur- und Völkergeschichte Alteuropas (in German), Strasbourg: Karl J. Trübner, page 331
^ Berneker, Erich (1908–1913) Slavisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume I, Heidelberg: Carl Winter's Universitätsbuchhandlung, page 559
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Trubachyov, Oleg et al., editors (1963, 1974–2021), “188”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), Moscow: Nauka, page 10
^ Ačaṙean, Hračʻeay (1973) “կանեփ”, in Hayerēn armatakan baṙaran [Armenian Etymological Dictionary] (in Armenian), 2nd edition, a reprint of the original 1926–1935 seven-volume edition, volume II, Yerevan: University Press, page 513ab
^ Edelʹman, D. I. (2011) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ iranskix jazykov [Etymological Dictionary of Iranian Languages] (in Russian), volume IV, Moscow: Vostochnaya Literatura, pages 218–220
^ Cabolov, R. L. (2001) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ kurdskovo jazyka [Etymological Dictionary of the Kurdish Language] (in Russian), volume I, Moscow: Russian Academy Press Vostochnaya Literatura, pages 552–553
^ Abajev, V. I. (1958) Историко-этимологический словарь осетинского языка [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of the Ossetian Language] (in Russian), volume I, Moscow and Leningrad: Academy Press, pages 512–513
^ Bailey, H. W. (1979) Dictionary of Khotan Saka, Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne: Cambridge University press, pages 51–52, 62
^ Steblin-Kamenskij, I.M. (1999) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ vaxanskovo jazyka [Etymological Dictionary of the Wakhi Language] (in Russian), Saint Petersburg: Peterburgskoje Vostokovedenije, →ISBN, page 216