πορνοκόπος, πορνοκοπέω
(Phryn. Ecl. 390, Phryn. Ecl. 394, Poll. 6.188)

A. Main sources

(1) Phryn. Ecl. 390: πορνοκόπος· οὕτω Μένανδρος, οἱ δ’ ἀρχαῖοι Ἀθηναῖοι πορνότριψ λέγουσιν.

πορνοκόπος (‘fornicator’): Menander (fr. 585 = C.1) [says] so, whereas the ancient Athenians say πορνότριψ (com. adesp. fr. 551 = C.2).

(2) Phryn. Ecl. 394: σύσσημον· οὐχ ὁρῶ μὰ τὸν Ἡρακλέα, τί πάσχουσιν οἱ τὸν Μένανδρον μέγαν ἄγοντες καὶ αἴροντες ὑπὲρ τὸ Ἑλληνικὸν ἅπαν. […] Βάλβον τὸν ἀπὸ τῶν Τράλλεων, ὃς εἰς τοσοῦτο προθυμίας καὶ θαύματος ἥκει Μενάνδρου ὥστε καὶ Δημοσθένους ἀμείνω ἐγχειρεῖν ἀποφαίνειν τὸν λέγοντα ‘μεσοπορεῖν’ καὶ ‘γῦρος’ καὶ ‘λήθαργος’ καὶ ‘σύσσημον’ καὶ ‘πορνοκόπος’ καὶ ‘ὀψωνιασμός’ καὶ ‘ὀψώνιον’ καὶ ‘δύσριγος’ καὶ ἄλλα κίβδηλα ἀναρίθμητα καὶ ἀμαθῆ.

σύσσημον (‘signal’, ‘ensign’): By Heracles, I do not know what the matter is with those who consider Menander great and extol him as the highest representative of all things Greek. […] (for I see) Balbus of Tralles, who reaches such a level of enthusiasm and admiration for Menander that he attempts to demonstrate that someone who uses words such as μεσοπορεῖν (‘to be half-way’), γῦρος (‘circle’), λήθαργος (‘forgetful’), σύσσημον, πορνοκόπος (fr. 585 = C.1), ὀψωνιασμός (‘furnishing with provisions’), ὀψώνιον (‘salary’), δύσριγος (‘sensitive to cold’) and other innumerable spurious and unlearned expressions, is better than Demosthenes. (Transl. Tribulato 2014, 201).

(3) Poll. 6.188: ὁ δ’ ἐπ’ ἀφροδισίοις μαινόμενος λάγνης ἂν καὶ λάγνος ῥηθείη, λαγνίστατος, λαγνεύων, εἰς Ἀφροδίτην νοσῶν, ἀσελγαίνων, ἀκολασταίνων, πορνοκοπῶν, πορνοβοσκοῖς συνών, […].

Someone who is crazy about sexual pleasures can be called λάγνης and λάγνος (‘lustful’), λαγνίστατος (‘very lustful’), λαγνεύων (‘being lecherous’), εἰς Ἀφροδίτην νοσῶν (‘being mad for pleasures’), ἀσελγαίνων (‘behaving licentiously’), ἀκολασταίνων (‘being licentious’), πορνοκοπῶν (‘being a fornicator’), πορνοβοσκοῖς συνών (‘having dealings with brothel-keepers’) […].

B. Other erudite sources

(1) Phryn. PS 17.15–8: ἄτριψ: ὁ οὐκ ἐντριβής τινι πράγματι καὶ ἔστι παρὰ τὸν τρίψω μέλλοντα, ὡς ἁρπάξω ἅρπαξ, κλέψω κλέψ καὶ βοῦκλεψ, καὶ τέξω τέξ καὶ ἐπίτεξ. οὕτως οὖν καὶ τρίψ καὶ ἄτριψ καὶ πορνότριψ. λέγεται δὲ καὶ ἀτρίβων.

ἁρπάξω cod. : ἁρπάζω de Borries.

ἄτριψ (‘unpractised’): Someone who is not practised in something, and it derives from the future [tense] τρίψω (‘I will wear out’), like ἅρπαξ (‘rapacious’) from ἁρπάζω (‘I will snatch away), κλέψ (‘thief’) and βοῦκλεψ (‘stealer of oxen’) from κλέψω (‘I will steal’), τέξ (‘parturient’), and ἐπίτεξ (‘about to give birth’) from τέξω (‘I will bring forth’). Therefore, likewise τρίψ (‘practised’) and ἄτριψ and πορνότριψ [derive from τρίψω]. ἀτρίβων (‘unpractised’) is also used.

(2) Hsch. π 3044: *πορν[ι]οκόπος· ἑταιροτρόφος. πόρνος.

πορνιοκόπος codd.

πορνοκόπος (cf. LXX Pr. 23.21 = C.3): Keeping mistresses. Fornicator.

(3) Schol. Ar. Av. 286a.α: καὶ πρὸς τὴν πορνοκοπίαν (VM₉ΓM) τοῦ Καλλίου (VΓM) καὶ ὅτι μοιχεύων χρήματα ἐδίδου. (VM₉ΓML)

(Aristophanes wrote this verse [Av. 286: αἵ τε θήλειαι πρὸς ἐκτίλλουσιν αὐτοῦ τὰ πτερά, ‘and the females too keep plucking away at his plumage’, transl. Henderson 2000, 55]) both because of Callias’ fornication and because he spent money to commit adultery.

(4) Thom.Mag. 291.15–292.3: πορνοκόπος Μένανδρος λέγει, οἱ δ’ ἀρχαῖοι πορνότριψ, ὃ καὶ κρεῖττον. τούτοις καὶ Συνέσιος ἑπόμενός φησιν ἐν ἐπιστολῇ [τῇ Ὁ καὶ τοὔνομα δοῦλος καὶ τὴν προαίρεσιν·] ὁ γὰρ ἰδὼν τὸν πορνότριβα σοβοῦντα διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς.

The words τῇ ~ προαίρεσιν are omitted in codd. ALLGB, but preserved by previous editors.

Menander says πορνοκόπος, but the ancients [say] πορνότριψ, which is better. Synesius too, following them, says in a letter (Ep. 45.17 = C.4) [the one that begins with the words ‘The slave both in name and character’]: ‘For he who sees the fornicator swaggering through the market […]’.

C. Loci classici, other relevant texts

(1) Men. fr. 585 = Phryn. Ecl. 390, Phryn. Ecl. 394 re. πορνοκόπος (A.1, A.2).

(2) Com. adesp. fr. 551 = Phryn. Ecl. 390 re. πορνότριψ (A.1).

(3) LXX Pr. 23.21: πᾶς γὰρ μέθυσος καὶ πορνοκόπος πτωχεύσει καὶ ἐνδύσεται διερρηγμένα καὶ ῥακώδη πᾶς ὑπνώδης.

For every drunkard and every fornicator will go about begging and every drowsy man will be dressed in rags.

(4) Synes. Epist. 45.17–21: ὁ γὰρ ἰδὼν τὸν πορνότριβα σοβοῦντα διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς, ἐν στεφάνῳ καὶ μύροις μεθύοντα καὶ κωμάζοντα καὶ πάσης ἀκολασίας κατεμπιμπλάμενον καὶ ᾠδὰς ᾄδοντα πρεπούσας τῷ βίῳ, ἐπὶ τοὺς ἔχοντας αὐτὸν τὴν αἰτίαν ἀνήγαγεν.

For he who saw this fornicator swaggering through the marketplace, drunk, wearing wreaths and perfumes and revelling, full of every kind of intemperance and singing songs fit for his life, attributed the cause of his behaviour to his masters.