caupōna Clientele - dependant on class?

Latin Learning Latin
1

Hi, I just have 2 small questions arising from looking into ποτιστήριον.

First. Why does Lewis and Short cite the Greek word πέπω in their entry for popina? That word doesn’t occur in LSJ.

pŏpīna , ae, f. > πέπω> , πέπτω, to cook,

I.a cook-shop, victualling-house, eating-house (syn.: “caupona, taberna): bibitur, estur, quasi in popinā,” Plaut. Poen. 4, 2, 13; Cic. Phil. 2, 28, 69; 13, 11, 24; Suet. Tib. 34;id. Ner. 16; Hor. S. 2, 4, 62; id. Ep. 1, 14, 21; Mart. 1, 42, 10;5, 70, 3; Juv. 8, 172; 11, 81. —

II. Transf., the food sold at a cookshop: “si epulae potiusquam popinae nominandae sunt,” Cic. Phil. 3, 8, 20: “taeterrimam popinam inhalare,” id. Pis. 6, 13.

Is it a post-Koine Greek word, or an Osco-Umbrian verb?

Second. Was the clientele of a caupōna distinguished by social class, in a way that those of the pŏpīna were? How about a tăberna?

2

As regards the first part: check out “πέπων” (which is LSJ and elsewhere). Quite the interesting word. As for πέπω I cannot recall seeing it used in Hellenistic Greek or later Greek in general (though this doesn’t necessarily mean it never was).

The etymological connection with popina is news to me, so thanks for that. (I note that this connection may be taken as uncontroversial and assured - the historical linguistic findings on which it is based are in this case very secure.)

I relinquish your main question to a better man/woman. (Though noting other words which may be of interest too - deversorium, hospitium, stabulum - for similarity to caupona in so far as they provided lodging.)