ἄπφα
μή, φίλα ψυχά, βίον ἀθάνατον σπεῦδε, τὰν δ' ἔμπρακτον ἄντλει μαχανάν → Oh! my soul do not aspire to eternal life, but exhaust the limits of the possible. | Do not yearn, O my soul, for immortal life! Use to the utmost the skill that is yours. | Do not, my soul, strive for the life of the immortals, but exhaust the practical means at your disposal.
French (Bailly abrégé)
indécl.
1 papa, petit père mot d’amitié;
2 frérot, sœurette mot d’enfant ; mot de tendresse entre amoureux.
Étymologie: DELG mot familier.
Frisk Etymological English
Grammatical information: m.
Meaning: endearing address between brothers and sisters, also beloved ones (Eust.)
Derivatives: ἀπφίον (Eust.), ἀπφάριον (Xenarch., Smyrna), ἀπφίδιον (Schol.); also ἀπφία (Poll., H.), ἀπφῦς m. papa (Theok.), expressive but unexplained.
Origin: ONOM [onomatopoia, and other elementary formations]
Etymology: Elementary term, cf. unaspirated ἄππα etc. See Chantraine REGr. 59-60, 245, Kretschmer Glotta 16, 184 m. On the phonetics s. Lejeune Traité 61.
