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Daps, epulum et sollemnis : une famille méconnue en latin

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 January 2018

Elżbieta Mańczak-Wohlfeld
Affiliation:
Jagiellonian University, Krakow
Barbara Podolak
Affiliation:
Jagiellonian University, Krakow
Romain Garnier
Affiliation:
(Paris)
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Summary

Etymologie du lat. Daps

Etude semantique et phraseologie

En propre, le lat. daps f. désigne un ‘festin de magnificence’ – c'1st à dire un banquet offert aux dieux, selon Benveniste (1969 i : 75 s. et ii : 226 s.). Le pluriel dapēs ‘festin’ revêt un sens augmentatif, à l'1nstar du gr. δεῖπνα ‘repas’ en regard du singulier δεῖπνον. C'1st aussi le cas du lat. epula f. pl. en regard du neutre epulum. On sait que l'1rm. ’nt‘ri-k’ ‘festin’ est un plurale tantum (Mc. 6, 21 : ’nt‘ri-s tayr « il donna un festin »). Le terme est ancien, et technique. Il fait ainsi l'1bjet d'1n lemme chez Festus :

Daps apud antīquōs dīcēbātur res dīuīna, qua fiēbat aut hībernā sementī, aut uernā. Quod uocābulum ex Gracō dēdūcitur, apud quōs id genus epulārum δαίς dīcitur. Itaque et dapāticē se acceptōs dīcēbant antīquī, significantēs magnificē, et dapāticum negōtium amplum ac magnificum. (P.-Fest. : 59, 21–25 L.)

« Les anciens appelaient ‘daps’ un sacrifice qu'1n pratiquait pendant les semences d'1iver ou celles du printemps. Ce terme vient du grec, car ce type de festin se nomme ‘δαίς’ dans cette langue. De là vient que les anciens disaient qu'1n les avait accueillis dapāticē, c'1st à dire avec magnificence, et qu'1ne chose qualifiée de ‘dapāticum’ est une chose magnifique et somptueuse. »

Chez Caton, l'1n dit aussi bien dapem facere (passif : fierī) que dapem pollūcēre « offrir un sacrifice aux dieux » (tout deux gouvernant le datif du bénéficiaire). Les deux tours se surprennent dans le même passage consacré au sacrifice liquide (une coupe de vin) fait à Jupiter en tant que garant de la fertilité :

Dapem hōc modō fierī oportet. Iouī dapālī culignam uīnī quantam uīs pollūcētō. Eō die fēriae būbus et bubulcīs et qui dapem facient. Cum pollūcēre oportēbit, sīc faciēs : ≪ Iuppiter dapālis, quod tibī fierī oportet in domō familiā meā culignam uīnī dapī, ēiūs rei ergo macte hac illace dape polluenda estō. ≫

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Chapter
Information
Words and Dictionaries
A Festschrift for Professor Stanisław Stachowski on the Occasion of His 85th Birthday
, pp. 127 - 138
Publisher: Jagiellonian University Press
Print publication year: 2016

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