noun · masculinethird declension
ōpiliō
ōpiliō m (genitive ōpiliōnis)
Meaning
- shepherd
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | ōpiliō | ōpiliōnēs ūpiliōnēs |
| genitive | ōpiliōnis ūpiliōnis | ōpiliōnum ūpiliōnum |
| dative | ōpiliōnī ūpiliōnī | ōpiliōnibus ūpiliōnibus |
| accusative | ōpiliōnem ūpiliōnem | ōpiliōnēs ūpiliōnēs |
| ablative | ōpiliōne ūpiliōne | ōpiliōnibus ūpiliōnibus |
| vocative | ōpiliō | ōpiliōnēs ūpiliōnēs |
ōpĭlĭo and ūpĭlĭo, ōnis, m. for ovilio, from ovis,
I. a shepherd:
etiam opilio, qui pascit alienas oves, Plaut. As. 3, 1, 36.— Form upilio, Verg. E. 10, 19; Col. 7, 3, 13; Dig. 32, 1, 60; Vulg. Gen. 38, 12.—II. A kind of bird, otherwise unknown, Fest. p. 191 Müll.
Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
ōpiliō see upilio.
Origins
Ultimately equivalent to ovis (“sheep”) + *piliō (uncertain meaning: “herd”, “driver”?), the latter component perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *pelh₂- (“to drive”), but not entirely inherited. The variants likely point to either dialectal influence or borrowings from other Italic languages; ū- in ūpiliō in particular looks to be Osco-Umbrian. Could be derived from a Proto-Italic compound such as *owi-polos. See cognates at Proto-Indo-European *h₂ówis (“sheep”).