A New Etymology

Abstract The thirteenth chapter proposes that *E1ék̑u̯os ‘horse’ was originally an adjective with an e-grade root, *E1ék̑- and a common *u̯o-suffix. The identity of that root is explored, and the Homeric use of ὄκνος, which in classical Attic means ‘sluggish’ or ‘shirking,’ is explored. The chapter shows Homer uses this adjective in contexts where there is an implication of disobedience, and its Homeric meaning was probably ‘disobedience.’ The horse then would have been ‘the unruly, spirited (animal).’ The chapter observes that, alone of domestic animals, horses must be ‘broken’ to be ridden. If this etymology is correct, labeling the horse ‘the unruly, spirited (animal)’ is the surest sign to date that the Indo-Europeans tamed and broke horses.