Himantopus
HIM-an-toe-pus
Genus
the one with strap-like legs; thong-footed
Literally: strap-foot
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| himant- | a strap, thong, leather band | Greek (himant, -o) | stem of Greek himás, genitive himántos |
| -o- | connecting vowel | standard Greek combining vowel | |
| -pus | a foot | Greek | from Greek poús, genitive podós; latinized masculine nominative singular ending -us |
A Greek compound noun (himanto- + -pus) latinized as a masculine nominative singular in -us. The two elements are joined by the standard Greek connecting vowel -o-. The head element -pus (foot) is modified by himanto- (strap), giving the sense 'one having strap-like feet/legs'. Used as a genus name and treated as Latin masculine gender. The allusion is to the extraordinarily long, slender legs of stilts, which resemble leather thongs.
Pronunciation
- HIM-an-toe-pus Antepenult stress: the penult syllable -to- contains a short vowel followed by only one consonant (p), making it a light penult, so stress shifts to the antepenult Hi-.
Other readings
No plausible alternative segmentation exists; the split himant-o-pus is unambiguous and confirmed by both dictionary entries.
Himantopus was coined by Brisson (1760) and is the accepted genus name for stilts (family Recurvirostridae). The suffix -pus here is the Greek root meaning 'foot' (dictionary term -pus, Greek), not the Latin =pus meaning 'pus/inflammation'. The connecting -o- is a Greek combining vowel and has no independent dictionary entry; it is not counted as a root.