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[19] τηλύγετον. As Buttmann showed (Lexil. s.v.), this word probably meant ‘beloved,’ ‘favourite.’ No probable derivation has been proposed. It may be worth suggesting that it comes from “θῆλυς” ‘soft,’ ‘delicate,’ through a verb “θηλύζω”, and thus originally meant ‘made tender,’ ‘caressed.’ For the initial τ cp. “τηλεθάω” from “θάλλω, θαλέθω”. So “Ταΰγετος” is probably from “ταΰς” ‘great’ (“ταΰσας μεγαλύνας” Hesych.). The γ is doubtless a formative element, and has nothing to do with the root “γα^”.

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