Movable nu
In ancient Greek grammar, movable nu, movable N or ephelcystic nu (Ancient Greek: νῦ ἐφελκυστικόν nû ephelkystikón, literally "dragged-in nu") is a letter nu (written ν; the Greek equivalent of the letter n) placed on the end of some grammatical forms in Attic or Ionic Greek. It is used to avoid two vowels in a row (hiatus) and to create a long syllable in poetic meter as a form of epenthesis.
| Ancient Greek grammar |
|---|
| General |
| Phonology |
In ancient Greek grammar, movable nu, movable N or ephelcystic nu (Ancient Greek: νῦ ἐφελκυστικόν nû ephelkystikón, literally "dragged-in nu") is a letter nu (written ν; the Greek equivalent of the letter n) placed on the end of some grammatical forms in Attic or Ionic Greek. It is used to avoid two vowels in a row (hiatus) and to create a long syllable in poetic meter as a form of epenthesis.
Grammatical forms
[edit]Movable nu may appear at the end of certain forms of verbs, nouns, and adjectives. In grammatical paradigms, it is usually written with a parenthesis to indicate that it is optional.
| third person plural present and future | ||
|---|---|---|
| λέγουσι(ν) | "they say" | present |
| τιθέασι(ν) | "they place" | |
| λέξουσι(ν) | "they will say" | future |
| third person singular perfect and past | ||
| τέθνηκε(ν) | "he has died", "is dead" | perfect |
| ἔλεγε(ν) | "he was saying" | imperfect |
| εἶπε(ν) | "he said" | aorist |
| ἐτεθνήκει(ν) | "he had died", "was dead" | pluperfect |
| third person singular present (athematic verbs) | ||
| τίθησι(ν) | "he places" | |
| ἐστί(ν) | "it is" | |
| dative plural | ||
| Ἕλλησι(ν) | "to Greeks" | |
| πᾶσι(ν) | "to all" | |
| ἀνθρώποισι(ν) | "to men" | Epic and Ionic |
| κούρῃσι(ν) | "to girls" | Epic and Ionic |
Usage
[edit]Movable nu is used before words starting in a vowel to prevent hiatus.
- πᾶσιν ἔλεγεν ἐκεῖνα "he said those things to everyone"
It is often omitted before consonants, but may be included there to produce a heavy syllable where the poetic meter requires one
- πᾶσι λέγουσι ταῦτα "they say these things to everyone"
- πᾶσι λέγουσιν ταῦτα "they say these things to everyone" with the dactylic pattern – ⏑ ⏑ | – – | – ×
It is often used at the end of clauses or verses.
See also
[edit]- Nu (letter)
- Ancient Greek
- Distinction between a and an, a similar rule in English
- Eifeler Regel, a similar rule in German dialects
Sources
[edit]- Herbert Weir Smyth, A Greek Grammar, par. 134.
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