- ὀσφῦς
- ὀσφῦς, -ύοςGrammatical information: f.Meaning: `hips, loin(s)' (IA.).Other forms: Hdn. Gr.; codd. often -ύς.Compounds: As 1. element a.o. in ὀσφυ-αλγής (A.Fr. 361 = 111 M., Hp.) `suffering from a hip-disease (lumbago)' with -έω, -ία (Hp.);Derivatives: Dimin. ὀσφύδιον n. (Theognost.).Origin: PG [a word of Pre-Greek origin]Etymology: Unexplained; for the formation cf. ἰξύς (Strömberg Wortstud. 67), νηδύς a.o. Mostly, but without serious argument (Benveniste Origines 7), connected with ὀστ-έον assuming diff. second members: φῡ- in ἔ-φυ-ν etc. (Kretschmer KZ 31, 332); to σφυ- in σφυδῶν ἰσχυρός ... H. (Persson Beitr. 1, 415 a. 2, 717; doubting). Other, also unconvincing hypotheses in Bq s.v., W.-Hofmann s. os, WP. 1, 175, Pok. 783, Schwyzer 302; also Prellwitz s.v. (to ψόαι (s.v.), ψύαι `loinmuscles'; thus Grošelj Živa Ant. 7, 44). Initial ὀ- prothetic acc. to Meillet BSL 27, 131 (because of the circumflex). - Furnée 375 adduces further φύς = ὀσφύς (AB 1096), with Dorian loss of initial σ- before φ. He also accepts (393) the connection with ψύαι, which is too obvious to be discarded. The word, then, is clearly Pre-Greek.Page in Frisk: 2,439
Greek-English etymological dictionary (Ελληνικά-Αγγλικά ετυμολογική λεξικό). Robert S.P.. 2010.