Dialectal and metrical treatment of feminine nouns in -ις: whether the final 'ι' is lengthened or contracted in Attic vs Ionic and in compounds; examples and Homeric citations.
ὄφις, κόνις, δῆρις, μάντις, ὄρχις, λάτρις, ὄρνις, Ἀριστοκλῆς δὲ ἐν τῷ περὶ διαλέκτων φησὶν Ἀττικοὺς ἐκτείνειν. εἰ δὲ σύνθετα ὑπάρχοι ἐξ ἁπλῶν ἐκτεινόντων τὸ 'ι', ἐκτείνονται, κνημίς εὐκνήμις, ψηφίς μελαμψήφις καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα. οὕτως καὶ ἐν τῷ «ἐϋκλήις ἀραρυῖα» (Ω 318) Ἀρίσταρχος ἀναγινώσκει ἐϋκλήϊς ὡς ἐϋκνήμις σύνθετον ποιῶν τὴν λέξιν, οὕτως καὶ Ἀσκαλωνίτης. εἰσὶ δὲ οἳ διεῖλον «ἐῢ κληῖς´ ἀραρυῖα», οἷς συγκατατίθεται καὶ Τρύφων, οὐκ εὖ. ἄμεινον γὰρ ἐπιθετικῶς ἀκούειν καὶ μὴ πάθος ἐκδέχεσθαι πληθυντικῆς δοτικῆς, λέγω δὲ τὸ τῆς ἐκθλίψεως. ὃ δέ φημι, τοιοῦτόν ἐστι, ὡς ὅτι ἐκθλίβεται μὲν τὸ 'ι' τῆς δοτικῆς παρὰ τῷ ποιητῇ καὶ ἑνικῆς ὑπαρχούσης καὶ πληθυντικῆς «κέρκιδ´ ὕφαινε» (Od. ε 62), «χέρς´ ἐρετάων» (Od. ν 115), «καὶ νήεσς´ ἡγήσατ´ Ἀχαιῶν» (Il. Α 71), οὔ γε μὴν τὸ ἀπὸ τῶν εἰς 'ις' ἐκτεταμένον θηλυκῶν εἰ δ´ ἡ προκειμένη λέξις κρίσεως δεῖται κατὰ τὴν ἀνάγνωσιν, δῆλον ὅτι συνθέτως ἀναγνωσόμεθα, ὅπως μὴ πληθυντικοῦ δῶμεν τὴν χρῆσιν παρὰ τὴν συνήθειαν τοῦ ποιητοῦ καὶ ἔκθλιψιν σημειώδη. εἰ δὴ σύνθετόν ἐστι τὸ εὐκλήις, καὶ παροξύνειν δεῖ αὐτό, μακρὸν γὰρ τὸ 'ι' καὶ ἐν τῇ συνθέσει· ἀπὸ γὰρ τοῦ χρόνου τὸν τόνον ἐστήσαμεν. Τὰ ὀξύτονα θηλυκὰ εἰς 'ις' λήγοντα μὴ καθαρεύοντα μεμελέτηκε καὶ ἐκτείνεσθαι καὶ συστέλλεσθαι. τοῖς μὲν οὖν συστέλλουσι τὸ 'ι' ἀδιάφορος ἡ πρὸ τέλους εἴτε μακρὰ εἴη εἴτε βραχεῖα, βολίς, ῥανίς, αἰγίς, μηλίς, Δωρίς· τοῖς δὲ ἐκτείνουσι τὸ 'ι', καὶ μάλιστα ἐπὶ δισυλλάβων, ἡ πρὸ τέλους μακρὰ ὑπῆρχεν ἤτοι φύσει ἢ θέσει, κρηνίς, ψηφίς, κηκίς, κηλίς, νησίς, σφραγίς, βαλβίς, φαρκίς, ἁρπίς, ἁψίς. δικαίως οὖν οἱ Ἀττικοὶ τὸ ῥιπίς καὶ καρίς, ἃ ἡ κοινὴ συνήθεια ἐκτείνει, συστέλλουσι. δισύλλαβα δὲ παρεθέμην, ἐπεὶ ὁρᾶται τρισύλλαβα βραχείᾳ παραληγόμενα καὶ κατὰ τὴν συνήθη χρῆσιν καὶ κατὰ τὴν τῶν Ἰώνων ἐκτείνοντα τὸ 'ι'· κατὰ δὲ τοὺς Ἀττικοὺς συστέλλονται. πλοκαμίς, κεραμίς, καλαμίς, βλεφαρίς, ῥαφανίς. τὸ δὲ ἀγαθίς ἀεὶ συστελλομένως· οὕτω δὲ καὶ ἡ τρυφαλίς συστέλλεται. καὶ ἐπίστασιν ἔχει τὸ κληΐς ἐκτεινόμενον καὶ καθαρεῦον. τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ πάντα συστέλλονται, Λαΐς, Ναΐς, Θησηΐς, δμωΐς, ἡρωΐς, Μινωΐς.
ὄφις, κόνις, δῆρις, μάντις, ὄρχις, λάτρις, ὄρνις; but Aristocles in his work On Dialects says that the Attic speakers lengthen (the ι). But if there are compounds formed from simple words that lengthen the ι, they are lengthened: κνημίς—εὐκνήμις, ψηφίς—μελαμψήφις, and all such cases. Thus also in the verse «ἐϋκλήις ἀραρυῖα» (Ω 318) Aristarchus reads ἐϋκλήϊς, making the word a compound, just as (he does with) εὐκνήμις; and so too the Ascalonite. But there are some who divided it as «ἐῢ κληῖς´ ἀραρυῖα», with whom Tryphon also agrees—incorrectly. For it is better to understand it as an epithet and not to admit an affection of the plural dative—I mean that of elision. What I mean is this: that the ι of the dative is indeed elided by the poet, whether the dative is singular or plural—«κέρκιδ´ ὕφαινε» (Od. ε 62), «χέρς´ ἐρετάων» (Od. ν 115), «καὶ νήεσς´ ἡγήσατ´ Ἀχαιῶν» (Il. Α 71)—but not the lengthened ι of feminine nouns in -ις. But if the word in question requires a decision in respect of the reading, it is clear that we shall read it as a compound, so that we may not give it a plural usage contrary to the poet’s habit and a conspicuous elision. If, then, εὐκλήις is a compound, it must also be accented with a circumflex on the penult (i.e. be paroxytone), for the ι is long even in composition; for from quantity we have fixed the accent. Oxytone feminine nouns ending in -ις that are not ‘pure’ have been observed both to lengthen and to shorten. For those that shorten the ι, the syllable before the last is indifferent, whether it is long or short: βολίς, ῥανίς, αἰγίς, μηλίς, Δωρίς. But for those that lengthen the ι, especially in disyllables, the syllable before the last was long, either by nature or by position: κρηνίς, ψηφίς, κηκίς, κηλίς, νησίς, σφραγίς, βαλβίς, φαρκίς, ἁρπίς, ἁψίς. Therefore the Attic speakers rightly shorten ῥιπίς and καρίς, which common usage lengthens. I cited disyllables because trisyllables with a short penult are seen, both in ordinary usage and among the Ionians, to lengthen the ι; but among the Attic speakers they are shortened: πλοκαμίς, κεραμίς, καλαμίς, βλεφαρίς, ῥαφανίς. But ἀγαθίς is always with shortening; and likewise τρυφαλίς is shortened. And κληΐς, which is lengthened and ‘pure’, has a special status. But all the rest are shortened: Λαΐς, Ναΐς, Θησηΐς, δμωΐς, ἡρωΐς, Μινωΐς.