[B-Greek] Analysis of middle-passive forms (was "John 11:4 and the Middle/Passive of DOXAZW")

Carl Conrad cwconrad2 at mac.com
Tue Mar 1 06:34:03 EST 2011


On Feb 28, 2011, at 7:03 PM, Tim Mclay wrote:

> I've been lurking a bit and just noticed this discussion. I can't remember where 
> they are published but Bernard Taylor has written a couple of articles in whch 
> he argues that the so-called deponents all have a middle force. He is mlore 
> known in LXX circles, but it is interesting that I don't see much on the XX when 
> it is biblical Greek as well. Is there ever much discussion?

On Feb 28, 2011, at 9:22 PM, Ken Penner wrote:

> Hi Tim,
> Would you be thinking of his contribution "Deponency and Greek Lexicography" in _Biblical Greek Language and Lexicography_ (Eerdmans, 2004)?
> Ken

On Feb 28, 2011, at 9:05 PM, Albert Pietersma wrote:

> Hi, Tim,
> As I recall Taylor does not focus particularly on the LXX. Moreover, the Greek of the LXX does come up for discussion from time to time, as the archives will show. Just keep lurking and you will no doubt see it being discussed again.
> Al

For the record, Bernard Taylor was associated with the LXX; I think that he worked with Dale Wheeler on the tagging of LXX text for Gramcord. Most recently he delivered a paper at last November's SBL session on Deponency in which he reviewed the history of the usage of the adjective APOQETIKH over the centuries in Greek and concluded, 

"It was the settled opinion in the late nineteenth century that ἁποθετική [APOQETIKH] is a back formation created to correspond to Latin deponens. I believe the historical perspective demonstrates they were correct. It is well past time to return deponency to Latin, and attune the ear to the nuances of the Greek middle voice. After all, as Schad has observed: 'Deponent verbs are essentially a Latin phenomenon.'”

Actually, however, the term "deponency" is no more suitable a description for the class of Latin verbs to which it has traditionally referred; the better Latin grammars do call attention to these verbs as surviving middle-voice forms. Moreover a careful analysis of the Latin deponent verbs shows that they fall, in terms of their nature, into the categories of middle-voice verbs noted by Suzanne Kemmer and Rutger Allan as commonly found in Greek and in many other languages.

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)






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