Axitiosae (Varro, Ling. VII 66): ¿‘activistas’, ‘extravagantes’ o ‘caprichosas’? Sobre los avatares de una interpretación léxica

Abstract

The adjective axitiosa, applied to the matrons and found in two fragments of Plautus, is quoted by Varro, who thinks that this word comes from ab una agendo. Against this traditional opinion, there is another modern one by which axitiosa would be connected with the word axitia (Leumann 1921). We are trying to guess why the adjective axitiosa has been created from the word axitia (although it is not clear the meaning of this word, however it seems to be referred to an article of women´s toilette), according to indirect inferences, such as the meaning of adjectives in –osus and the structure of the speech developed in the Latin comedy against the women´s adornment. As a result of this, we shall reject the ancient etymology of axitiosa (ab una agendo) and its modern sociological interpretations (as “activist women”) and, according to Leumann, we will consider the adjective axitiosa as a misogynist word to designate the eccentricity of Roman matrons who take a fancy to something worthless and the irony of employing this inappropriate word for them.