neleze/i-
‘of the agora’
- Language
- Lycian A
- Grammar
- adj
- ID
- 3011
1. Individual Anatolian Languages
1.1 Lycian A
neleze/i-
‘of the agora’1.1.1Transmission
This word in attested in a Greek-Lycian bilingual inscription found on a sarcophagus. Whereas the beginning of the inscription was already known, its second part, to which the present lemma belongs, was discovered only much later and published by Neumann & Zimmermann 2003a. Furthermore, it is also attested in the inscription of the inscribed pillar of Xanthos (TL 44), dated contextually to shortly after the ascension of Artaxerxes II in 405-404 BCE and stylistically to around 400 BCE (Borchhardt & Eichner 1997-1999a:19f.), as well as in a dedicatory inscription of Arbinas (N 324, beginning of the 4th c. BCE).
[D.S.]
1.1.2Forms
| nom. pl. c. | nelez[i] | TL 72 (Kyaneai) |
| dat./loc. pl. | neleze | TL 44a.27 (Xanthos) |
| gen. pl. | nelezẽ | N 324.8 (Xanthos) |
For the grammatical analysis of nelezẽ as gen. pl., see Bousquet 1992a:184 and Sasseville 2014-2015a:113 and cf. Melchert in DLL:43 “nom./acc. sg. n. (or gen. pl.)”.
[D.S.]
1.1.3Graphic Features
On grammatical grounds, Neumann & Zimmermann 2003a:192 suggest restoring an -i in nelez[i] to obtain a nom. pl. c. agreement with mahãi (followed by Christiansen 2009a:47, Schürr 2010a:156). The 2003 publication of the rest of the inscription TL 72 was overlooked by Gehrisch 2018a:120.
[D.S.]
1.1.4Meaning
The bilingual inscription, completely recovered in 2003, shows that Lycian neleze/i- corresponds to Greek ἀγοραῖος ‘of the agora’. This is further supported by the attestation mahãna neleze on the inscribed pillar of Xanthos, corresponding to θεοῖς ἀγορᾶς (TL 44c.22) in the Greek epigram of the same stele (Neumann 2007a:239 and Eichner 2005a:20 n. 95). However, pace Neumann ibid., [....]jẽ : nelezẽ : trqqñ[t … ] (N 324.8) cannot be taken as an attributive epithet of the Storm-god in the accusative singular, for which *nelezi would be expected (thus with Schürr & Dönmez 2015a:144). For the restoration of the abl./instr. trqqñt[a/edi] and a syntactic interpretation of this passage, see Sasseville 2014-2015a:113, pace Bousquet 1992a:184. In any case, the translation ‘of the agora’ for Lyc. A neleze/i- is accepted by Eichner 2005a:20 n. 94, 95, Christiansen 2009a:47, Schürr 2010a:156, and Christiansen 2019b:83f.Outdated Neumann 1961a:52 “Kriegsdenkmal”, Shevoroshkin 2002a:229 “square, precinct”.
[D.S.]
1.1.5Stem
As explained by Neumann & Zimmermann 2003a:192, neleze/i- is an adjectival derivative in -ze/i- built on the noun nele(/i)- (likewise Eichner 2005a:20 n. 94).
[D.S.]
For the lemma head, see Lyc. nele(/i)-.