Phonological and accentual discussion of Greek monosyllabic nouns ending in -ους and -ης, with dialectal variations (Dorian, regional ethnonyms), examples (βοῦς, πλοῦς, ναῦς, πούς, δοῦς, etc.), and references to Hecataeus and Herodotus.
»μὴ Δνεὺς χίμαιραν, ἄγριον ὀφλήσεις«. τὸ μέντοι νεῦς ἡ ναῦς περισπᾶται ὥσπερ καὶ τὸ γρεῦς. Τὰ εἰς 'ους' μονοσύλλαβα, εἴτε ἀπαθῆ εἴτε συνῃρημένα, περισπᾶται, βοῦς, πλοῦς, ῥοῦς, φλοῦς, χλοῦς, Γλοῦς ὁ λῃστής, χνοῦς παρὰ Σοφοκλεῖ, κνοῦς, θροῦς, νοῦς, σοῦς, χροῦς πολὺ παρὰ τοῖς Ἴωσι, χοῦς καὶ Χοῦς ἔθνος Βεχείρων ἐγγύς. Ἑκαταῖος ἐν Ἀσίᾳ »εἰς μὲν τοῦτο ἡ Βεχειρική, ἔχονται δ´ αὐτῶν Χοῖ« καὶ πάλιν »μέχρι μὲν τούτων Χοῖ« καὶ πάλιν »Χοῖσι δὲ ὁμουρέουσι πρὸς ἥλιον ἀνίσχοντα Δίζηρες«. καὶ τὸ οὖς οὐδέτερον. τοῦτο δὲ οὕτως ἐγένετο· παρὰ τὸ αὔω τὸ φωνῶ γίνεται αὖας· καὶ τροπῇ τοῦ 'α' εἰς 'ο' οὖας, τὸ τῆς φωνῆς ἀντιληπτικὸν αἰσθητήριον· κλίνεται οὔατος ὡς δέρας δέρατος. ἐκ δὲ τούτου γίνεται κατὰ ἀποβολὴν τοῦ 'υ' ὄας καὶ κατὰ κρᾶσιν οὖς καὶ κατὰ Δωριεῖς ὦς. σημειωτέον τὸ πούς ὀξυνόμενον. μετοχῆς γὰρ ἐδέξατο τόνον. καὶ γὰρ τὸ δούς ὀξύνεται. Τὰ εἰς 'ης' κατὰ διάλεκτον γινόμενα ἐκεῖνον ἔχει τὸν τόνον, ὁποῖον καὶ τὰ πρωτότυπα, μήν μής, δαίς δής, παῖς πῆς, εἷς ἧς. παρὰ γὰρ Ῥίνθωνι »οὐδ´ ἧς κύων«. Τὰ εἰς 'ης' μονοσύλλαβα τυχόντα φυσικῆς καταλήξεως ἢ ὀξύνεται ἢ περισπᾶται· καὶ ὀξύνεται μὲν τὰ περιττοσυλλάβως κλινόμενα, Κρής ὁ Διὸς καὶ Ἰδαίας νύμφης παῖς καὶ ὁ πολίτης, σής ὁ σκώληξ καὶ ποταμοῦ ὄνομα, Γνής ἔθνος οἰκῆσαν τὴν Ῥόδον· ἔνθεν ἴγνητες οἱ ἰθαγενεῖς· λέγεται γὰρ καὶ μετὰ τοῦ 'ι' ἴγνητες. Φρής ἔθνος Λιβυκόν, Γλής ἔθνος Ἰβηρικὸν μετὰ τοὺς Κύνητας. Ἡρόδωρος δεκάτῳ τῶν καθ´ Ἡρακλέα ἱστοριῶν »τὸ δὲ Ἰβηρικὸν γένος τοῦτο, ὅπερ φημὶ οἰκέειν
“Do not (say) Δνεὺς (for) χίμαιραν; you will incur a harsh penalty.” The form νεῦς, i.e. ναῦς, however, is circumflexed, just as γρεῦς is. Monosyllables in -ους, whether uninflected or contracted, are circumflexed: βοῦς, πλοῦς, ῥοῦς, φλοῦς, χλοῦς, Γλοῦς the robber, χνοῦς in Sophocles, κνοῦς, θροῦς, νοῦς, σοῦς, χροῦς (very common among the Ionians), χοῦς, and Χοῦς, a people near the Becheires. Hecataeus in the Asia (says): “up to this point is the Becheiric (land), and next to them are the Χοῖ,” and again, “as far as these are the Χοῖ,” and again, “and bordering on the Χοῖ toward the rising sun are the Δίζηρες.” And οὖς is neuter. This came about as follows: from αὔω, “I utter a sound,” comes αὖας; and by changing α to ο, οὖας, the sense-organ that receives the voice; it is declined οὔατος, like δέρας, δέρατος. From this, by dropping υ, comes ὄας, and by contraction οὖς, and in Doric ὦς. Note that πούς is accented with an acute; for it has received its accent from a participle. For δοὺς too is accented with an acute. Forms in -ης that arise according to dialect have that accent which the originals also have: μήν, μής; δαίς, δής; παῖς, πῆς; εἷς, ἧς. For in Rhinthon: “not even one dog.” Monosyllables in -ης that happen to have a natural ending are either acute-accented or circumflexed; and acute-accented are those declined with an odd number of syllables: Κρής, the son of Zeus and the Idaean nymph and also the citizen; σής, the worm and the name of a river; Γνής, a people who inhabited Rhodes—whence ἴγνητες, the natives; for it is also said with iota, ἴγνητες. Φρής, a Libyan people; Γλής, an Iberian people after the Cynetes. Herodorus in the tenth book of the Histories concerning Heracles: “and this Iberian people, which I say inhabits …”