Camillus. Une transposition du grec "Gamilios" ?

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The word Camillus refers to a servant of the flamen Dialis and to an young taking part to a formal wedding; it derives through the Etruscan language from the Greek word γαμίλιος meaning "nuptial". In his De lingua Latina, Varro gives to this word camillus a false etymology; he establishes a link to the Greek word κάσμιλος that refers in the Samothracian mysteries to Hermes as a servant of the Great Gods. By this false etymology, Varro lends credibility to a word being a surname at Rome, because it should come from an island where religious faith is important (initiation to the mysteries, origin of the Roman Penates), and where the Pelasgians, ancestors of the Etruscans, were residing.

Mots clé : Varro, étymologie, langue étrusque, Samothrace, religions anciennes