Aorist with α/o

Greek Koine and Biblical and Medieval Greek
1

Rutherford’s The New Phrynichus (https://archive.org/details/newphrynichus00magoog/page/n234/mode/2up) has a “Paragdigm” of ειπ- + α-Aorist and + -ο-Aorist-Forms.

I don’t understand what he means with “The two accurately supplement one another in Attic Greek, according tot the following paradigm”: I know and understand the words, but I don’t get the message.

Maybe someone could explain to me, how to onderstand the message and the paradigm.

Regards

Jean

2

They are simply alternate forms. The -α- forms are a later development.

3

Thanks Barry,

but that goes - as far as I know - for all cases, where the Aorist of a verb has -α-Forms and -ο-Forms. To me the text of Rutherford suggests, that in the ειπον/ειπα-cases something spocial was happening. That’s what was puzzling me.

Regards
Jean

4

My understanding is that he is referring to the fact that we have a single paradigm for each position, not two rival paradigms in any position. You never see εἶπα, only εἶπον. You never see εἶπες, only εἶπας (in Attic? it’s certainly all over Homer). The α seems only seems to go before τ or σ.

EDIT: I searched TLG on the claim. εἶπες is what Plato uses (I should have known), but εἶπας seems to be used in the dramatists, to the exclusion of εἶπες

5

Joel, now I understand the paradigm. Thanks.

Jean