Well yes, the words MAYBE and PERHAPS are the most important here... I had also checked my reference historical dictionary (Robert historique) which tells about the same:
- "gnomon" cleraly comes from the greek <gnömön> = rule, regulator, of the same origin as the word <gnömê> = opinion, thought. of the family of the verb <gignôskein> = to know, which gave also "gnosis" (FR 'gnose'). - then "gnome" is from the alchemists latin <gnomus> used by Paacelsius as a synonym of 'Pygmée', and of which the origin is _discussed_. It is _maybe_ an alteration of <°genomus> of a greek type <°gênomos> = inhabitant of the Earth, with the _possible_ influence of <gnômê> = opinion, thought, intelligence, as the "little ugly and difform wizards presiding the Earth" could have been regarded as having intellectual powers (cfr. 'demons'). The ° sign above means that the following word is _not_ evidenced in the sources. So, many conditional and uncertainties... The link, if any, seems very veeeeery weak. There was a time when etymology was all the rage, and philologists wanted to find some filiation for any word... sometimes at the cost of inventing! Cheers, Thierry vs -- __________________________________ Thierry vs 50.8N 4.3E mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________ MMB wrote: > > Krzysztof Kotynia wrote: > > > > > >> My wife and I saw a delightful French movie, "Amelie". A Gnome was in > > > the movie. Does anyone know if the word is related to the word gnomon? > > > .... > > Maybe it is. I have just been to my reference library to consult my > countryman Eric Partridge on this matter. In his "Origins: a Short > Etymological Dictionary of the English Language" [1966 edition] his > first entry for the word "gnome" is the 16th century Latin reference by > Paracelsus (a German-speaking scholar born in Switzerland) and explains > that his "gnomus" is perhaps from the Greek "gnome" meaning intelligent > and adds that gnomes were reputedly intelligent. > > He continues. "The syllable "gnom-" occurs also in Greek "gnomon", a > knower, hence a SUNDIAL's index (knower of time) and carpenter's square. > > Altogether he gives 8 uses of "gnome" and I have reproduced the relevant > two, although all the others include the meaning "know". > > Hope this helps. Sounds convincing to me. (I have always thought of > gnomes as first wily/wise. The diminutive size of a gnome is shared with > a "dwarf" but a "gnome" is also "knowing".) > > Maria Brandl > Mallacoota > Australia > - -
