Re: Pagan - etymology?

> Date:         Wed, 12 Jul 2000 22:20:26 -0500
> From: "Thomas R. Wier" <artabanos@...>
> Well, I think we're confusing issues a little. According Cary and
> Schullard's _A History of Rome_, "[e]ach valley or plateau
> constituted a pagus with an elective headman (mendix).... [t]he pagi
> were loosely associated into cantonal associations... and each of
> these populi formed a touto....". Now, that is the status of the
> pagus as of, oh, 200 BC; [...]
Very interesting words...

Could pagus be a thematic variant of pax? Also cf. Greek pagos as in
Areopagos. (Construing paganus as a person from a peaceful area should
make everyone happy).

I suppose mendix relates to (later?) mendax = lying and mendicus =
beggar --- if so, the word has come down in the world.

Touto --- is that 3f touto, toutonis? Perseus (Lewis & Short) does not
list it. But it almost has to be related to Germanic *teuto- as in
Dutch.

And I wonder about populus vs G folk. I really should get around to
buying a proper IE etymological book.

Lars Mathiesen (U of Copenhagen CS Dep) <thorinn@...> (Humour NOT marked)