DOI: 10.53084/2220-9050.2025.31.1.002

M.V. Egorochkin
Suda Δ 400: On a “Delian diver”

Abstract: The paper examines the entry Δ 400, Δηλίου κολυμβητοῦ, in the Suda, a tenth-century Byzantine encyclopedic lexicon. This expression first appears in a famous anecdote, quoted by Diogenes Laertius with reference to the peripatetic Aristo of Ceos, according to which Socrates, when asked by Euripides, what he thought of Heraclitus’s book, replied that it needed “a Delian diver” (D.L. II. 22 et IX. 11 = Aristo. Ceus. fr. 29–30 Wehrli; fr. 24a–b SFOD). A careful analysis of the entry reveals that Suda reflects a quite different tradition than that of Diogenes Laertius, and that this tradition had undergone significant changes by the time the Byzantine lexicon was created. This follows not only from the examples of the use of the expression Δηλίου κολυμβητοῦ, but also from its interpretations, which Suda gives of it, using either the verb νήχομαι or the substantival participle νηχόμενος formed from it. The paper shows that this word usage is far from accidental and can be explained by the fact that by the time of the creation of the Suda lexicon, Δήλιος κολυμβητής was no longer understood as “Delian diver”, but had acquired a much broader meaning of “Delian swimmer”. In order to demonstrate how the meaning of the words κολυμβάω and κολυμβητής changed over the centuries, the author provides and analyzes rich comparative material. Finally, by comparing Δ 400 with references to the “Diver” in the Alexandrian Neoplatonists Elias and David, the author concludes that already by the 6th century CE Δήλιος κολυμβητής had come to be understood differently from the original anecdote.

Keywords: a Delian diver, Heraclitus’ book, Suda, ancient anecdotes, Greek paroemiography

To cite this article: Egorochkin M.V. Suda Δ 400: On a “Delian diver”. Aristeas XXXI (2025): 29–45.

References:
Adler A. 1928–1938: Suidae lexicon. Vol. I–V. Lipsiae.
Auberger J. 1996: Quand la nage devint natation... Latomus 55 (1): 48–62.
Beck H.-G. 1971: Geschichte der byzantinischen Volksliteratur. München.
Chantraine P. 1932: Deux notes sur des formes verbales grecques. Bulletin de la Société de linguistique de Paris 33: 77–90.
Chantraine P. 1999: Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: Histoire des mots, terminé par O. Masson, J.-L. Perpillou, J. Taillardat et al.; nouvelle éd. avec un «Supplément» sous la dir. de A. Blanc, Ch. de Lambertrerie et J.-L. Perillou. Paris.
Edmonds J.M. 1957–1961: The Fragments of Attic Comedy. Vol. I–III. Leiden.
Floridi L. 2014: Lucillio. Epigrammi: Introduzione, testo critico, traduzione e commento. Berlin; Boston.
Keydell R. 1968: Zur Sprache des Epigrammatikers Lukillios. Philologus 112: 141–145.
Kirk G.S. 1962: Heraclitus. The Cosmic Fragments. 2nd ed. Cambridge.
Kisilier M.L. 2007: Peremeshchenie v vode v drevnegrecheskom yazyke [Motion in a Liquid Medium in Ancient Greek]. In: Maisak T.A., Rakhilina E.V. (eds.). Glagoly dvizheniya v vode: leksicheskaya tipologiya [Verbs of Aqua-motion: Lexical Typology]. Moscow. 351–379.
Кисилиер М.Л.: Перемещение в воде в древнегреческом языке. В кн.: Майсак Т.А., Рахилина Е.В (ред.). Глаголы движения в воде: лексическая типология. М., 2007. 351–379.
Kurtz E. 1886: Die Sprichwörtersammlung des Maximus Planudes. Leipzig.
Lambros S.P. 1895–1900: Catalogue of the Greek Manuscripts on Mount Athos. Vol. I–II. Cambridge.
Lemerle P. 1971: Le premier humanisme byzantin: Notes et remarques sur enseignement et culture à Byzance des origines au Xe siècle. Paris.
Marcovich M. 1999: Diogenis Laertii Vitae philosophorum. Vol. I: Libri I–X; Vol. II: Excerpta Byzantina. Berolini; Novi Eboraci; Stutgardiae; Lipsiae.
Pio J. 1867: Sproglige Erindringer fra en Rejse i Grækenland, I: Ordsamling og Prøver af Almuemaalet paa Syra. Tidskrift for Philologi og Pædagogik 7: 38–80.
Ruta A. 2021: Note sulla trasmissione testuale dei corpora paremiografici. Museum Helveticum 78 (2): 242–249.
Tosi R. 1988: Studi sulla tradizione indiretta dei classici greci. Bologna.
Tosi R. 1994: La lessicografia e la paremiografia in età alessandrina ed il loro sviluppo successivo. In: Montanari F. (éd.). Entretiens sur l’Antiquité classique. T. XL: La philologie grecque à l’époque hellenistique et romaine. Vandœuvres–Genève. 143–209.
Tosi R. 2015: Esichio e la semplificazione di strutture complesse nella trasmissione dei lessici. In: Tziatzi M., Billerbeck M., Montanari F., Tsantsanoglou K. (Hrsg.). Lemmata: Beiträge zum Gedenken an Christos Theodoridis. Berlin; Boston. 411–417.
Βενιζέλος Ι. 1867: Παροιμίαι δημώδεις. Έκδοσ. 2. Ερμούπολη.
Πολίτης Ν.Γ. 1899–1902: Μελέται περί του βίου και της γλώσσης του ελληνικού λαού: Παροιμίαι. T. I–IV. Αθήναι.
Σωτηρούδης Π. 1998: Συλλογή παροιμιών και ονειροκριτικών στίχων στον κώδ. Ιβήρων 79. In: Vassis I., Henrich G.S., Reinsch D.R. (Hrsg.). Lesarten: Festschrift für Athanasios Kambylis zum 70. Geburtstag dargebracht von Schülern, Kollegen und Freunden. Berlin; New York. 101–109.


Author:

Mikhail V. Egorochkin