STEPHANUS ON THE BOOK "ON INTERPRETATION" [Aristotle pages 16a 19-20]

A name is a spoken sound significant by convention, without time, of which no part is significant in separation. For instance, let us say "Socrates" is a spoken sound that is both significant and exists by convention—that is, by institution—and is without time (for it does not signify a specific time), and of its parts taken 5 separately, such as the syllable "So" or "crates," neither signifies anything. Let us now explain each word of the definition. He used "spoken sound" in place of the genus genus: the general category to which a definition belongs. Strictly speaking, spoken sound is not the genus of the name, because a name exists by institution, while a sound exists by nature; and it is impossible among genera and species for the one to be by nature and the other by institution. Rather, he took spoken sound as the matter matter: the underlying "stuff" that receives a form 10 analogous to the genus. For as we have often learned, f. 40r matter is analogous to the genus, while the specific shape or form form: the specific characteristics that define a thing corresponds to the constitutive differences. Just as we say a sacred ship original: "theōris," a vessel used for state embassies to festivals is wood constructed in such-and-such a way—making our description from the matter and the form—so here he took the spoken sound, being the matter of the name, as the genus, 15 while "significant" and the rest he took as constitutive differences distinguishing this kind of sound from non-significant sounds, both the unarticulated and the articulated. Unarticulated significant sounds include simple noises and the barking of a dog. Articulated sounds include words like "goat-stag" original: "tragelaphos," a mythical beast used as a standard example of a word with meaning but no physical reality and "blituri" a nonsense word used by ancient logicians, similar to "gibberish" and such things. He said "by convention" 20 instead of "by institution"; for the Egyptians agreed to call things by these names, while the Greeks used those, and others used different ones. This was said to contrast human speech with the sounds of other animals, such as the barking of a dog. For a dog's bark is a spoken sound and is significant (since it indicates the presence of friends or strangers), but it is not "by convention." The dogs did not 25 agree among themselves that "we shall bark at the presence of a stranger." He said "without time" because of verbs; for the word "human" does not signify time. But some people raise a puzzle: what do we say about temporal names, such as "yesterday's," "today's," "evening's," or "last year's"? For these clearly signify time. How then can he say that names are "without time"? To this we say, as the philosopher Porphyry Porphyry (c. 234–305 AD) was a Neoplatonist whose "Isagoge" became a standard textbook on logic 30 says, that "without time" must be understood here as "not co-signifying time" co-signify: to indicate a secondary meaning, like time, alongside the primary meaning. For verbs do not merely signify time, they co-signify it. To "hit" or to "be hit" signifies a specific action or passion alongside the present time; likewise for the other tenses of the verb, both the future and the past. But the aforementioned 35 temporal names do not co-signify an action or passion along with the time.

p. 16a 20 Of which no part is significant in separation.
f. 40v He said this well; for even if from the name "human" original: "anthrōpos" the syllable an...

4 "of the parts" in manuscript P
15 "distinguishing" [emended by editor, cf. Ammonius fol. 25v]
sounds: "distinguishing" in P
19 "instead of this" in P
25 "but some people raise a puzzle" [cf. Ammonius fol. 27r]
30 "they co-signify" in P

7 "the" [deleted by editor]
12 "sacred ship" [emended by editor, cf. Pollux 4, 123]: "theory" in P
The word "significant" distinguishes the name from non-significant sounds
17 "of a noise" in P
18 "by convention" [cf. Ammonius fol. 26r]
21 "as" [added by editor]
24 "we shall bark" [corrected from "we will bark" in P]
[cf. Boethius Vol. II p. 57]
27 "last year's" in P
34 "co-signify" written with a sigma in P
36 "of significant [things]" in P