Anicetum

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Anicetum apud Plinium quidam anisum vocant.


Apparatus:

Anicetum AD | Anicetam C | Anicetan efp | Anicetã H | Aniceran B | Niceran j {without initial}
quidam om. f
vocant | vocat f


Translation:

Anicetum according to Pliny is the name some people give to anisum {“aniseed”}.


Commentary:

This is a reference to Pliny [Loeb], vol. VI, book XX, p. 108, lxxii, § 186.

Anicetum:
In this chapter Pliny speaks of the multiple uses of anesum {“aniseed”}, e.g. its use for improving wine, seasoning food, removing bad odour and breath, relieving sleeplessness etc, and he finishes saying: ob has causas quidam anicetum id vocavere – “and for all those reasons some people have called this herb anicetum.

The meaning of this word is not quite clear, but it is likely a Latinised spelling of Greek ἀνίκητον /aníkēton/ “invincible”. In fact ἀνίκητον /aníkēton/ is also mentioned in the RV version {sometimes also called Ps. Dioscorides} of the Greek Dioscorides, Wellmann vol. II, book III, p. 70, chapter 58 RV [[1]]: ἄνηθον τὸ ἐσθιόμενον , … οἱ δὲ ἀνίκητον, … Ῥωμαῖοι ἀνήθουμ - /ánēthon tò esthiómenos, … hoi dè aníkēton … Rhōmaîoi anḗthoum/ - “the /ánēthon/ that is consumed, some people call ….. /aníkēton/, … the Romans /anḗthoum/”. Here the word is a synonym for anet(h)um, often identified as Anethum graveolens L. {“dill”} rather than anesum {“aniseed”} as with Pliny.

Naturally plant names like anesum/ anet(h)um are phonetically too similar not to suffer confusion, which may well be the reason for the discrepancy between the two ancient authors.


WilfGunther (talk) 18:02, 13 February 2016 (GMT)


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