Luke 1:29 Why Nominative?

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MechPebbles
Posts: 2
Joined: September 24th, 2014, 11:20 am

Luke 1:29 Why Nominative?

Post by MechPebbles »

ἡ δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ λόγῳ διεταράχθη καὶ διελογίζετο ποταπὸς εἴη ὁ ἀσπασμὸς οὗτος. Luke 1:29

Why is ὁ ἀσπασμὸς οὗτος in the nominative? Is it because it is an indirect quotation of Mary's thoughts? If so, is this the standard way cases are treated in indirect quotations (i.e., cases are preserved unchanged)?
Barry Hofstetter
Posts: 2159
Joined: May 6th, 2011, 1:48 pm

Re: Luke 1:29 Why Nominative?

Post by Barry Hofstetter »

MechPebbles wrote: July 20th, 2020, 1:58 am ἡ δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ λόγῳ διεταράχθη καὶ διελογίζετο ποταπὸς εἴη ὁ ἀσπασμὸς οὗτος. Luke 1:29

Why is ὁ ἀσπασμὸς οὗτος in the nominative? Is it because it is an indirect quotation of Mary's thoughts? If so, is this the standard way cases are treated in indirect quotations (i.e., cases are preserved unchanged)?
It's the subject of the verb εἰη in, as you observe, an indirect question, and so naturally takes the nominative. A noun in an indirect question will take the appropriate case according to its grammatical usage in its clause.
N.E. Barry Hofstetter, M.A., Th.M.
Ph.D. Student U of FL
Instructor of Latin
Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy
καὶ σὺ τὸ σὸν ποιήσεις κἀγὼ τὸ ἐμόν. ἆρον τὸ σὸν καὶ ὕπαγε.
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