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G. DUMEZIL Summanus, Vacuna », Studi Linguistici in Onore Di V

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G. DUMEZIL Summanus, Vacuna », Studi Linguistici in Onore Di V VACVNA PAR G. DUMEZIL Paris Une monographie de M. A. L. Prodoscimi a recemment rappele l'attention sur la dee sse Vacuna (( Etimologie di teonimi: Venilia, Summanus, Vacuna », Studi linguistici in onore di V ittore Pisani, 1969, II, pp. 795-801). Je ne pense pas que la these ni la methode en soient recevables, mais Ie dossier s'y trouve commodement reuni. II tient d'ailleurs en quelques lignes. Ce sont: I. Un vers d'Horace, a la fin d'une Epitre (I, 10, 49). Quatre mots enseignent que la deesse avait, pres de la maison du poete, dans la Sabine, un sanctuaire, janum, qualifie de putre ({ delabre &. II. Des notes mises a ce passage par lea deux commentateurs d'Horace, Porphyrion et Ie pseudo.Acron. La premiere declare: Vacuna in Sabini8 dea; la seconde, plus modestement: Vacunam apud Sabino8 plurimum cultam; et toutes deux enumerent les interpretationes auxqueIIes a donne lieu cette divinite quae BUb incerta 8pecie e8t jormata (Porph.) : 1. Porphyrion: Haec quidam BeIIonam, alii Mineruam, alii Dianam dicunt. 2. Acron: a) Vacunam alii Cererem, alii deam ({ uacationis &, alii Victoriam, qua jauente «curi8 uacamus »; b) V acunam apud Sabino8 plurimum cultam quidam Mineruam, alii Dianam putauerunt; c) nonnulli etiam Venerem e88e dixerunt; d) sed Varro primo Rerum Diuinarum Victoriam ait quod ea maxime hi gaudent «qui 8apientiae uacant ». III. Deux vers du sixieme livre des Fastes. Apres avoir rappele (305·306) a propos de Vesta que, dans les temps anciens, I'usage etait de s'asseoir ensemble sur des bancs ante jocos, devant Ie foyer, et que I'on croyait que les dieux venaient familierement pres de la table des hommes, Ovide ajoute (307·308) : Nunc quoque cum jiunt antiquae 8acra Vacunae ante Vacunales 8tant sedentque jocos, «Aujourd'hui encore, quand un culte est rendu a I'antique Vacuna, (Ies hommes) se tiennent, debout ou assis, devant Ie foyer, JOC08, Vacu· nales»; et il conclut (309·310) : ({ Quelque chose a subsiste jusqu'a nous de cet usage des ancetres: un plat bien nettoye presente a Vesta les mets qu'on lui adresse ». 308 G. DUMEZIL IV. Quatre ex-voto a. Vacuna, trouves en territoire sabin. Deux seulement, tous deux de Poggio Fidoni, indiquent un motif : OIL IX 4751 (Dessau 3486) : Pro reditu L. Acesti ex Africa uoui Vacunae Aredia Daph(ne) et O. Pomponiua; OIL IX, 4752 (Dessau, 3485): ... esuuius Modestus Vacun[ae pro] ualetu­ dine pat[ris] v. [a.]. Oe dossier donne lieu aux remarques suivantes: II, III, IV. Les gloses a Horace (II), confirmees par Horace lui­ me me (I) et par les inscriptions (IV), enseignent que la deesse etait particulierement honoree dans la Sabine, mais Ovide (III) parle d'elle comme d'une vieille deesse romaine. Sans doute s'agit-il d'une divinite commune, de toujours, aux deux peuples, comme il semble en avoir existe beaucoup, malgre Ie parti-pris sabinisant de Varron. II. Les gloses a Horace montrent que Ie travail d'interpretation, ou plutOt d'assimilation, des erudits romains avait abouti a des resul­ tats divergents et, pris litteralement, incompatibles: 1. Porphyrion, qui parle seulement de la Sabine (II, 1), ne donne qu'une liste de trois noms, Bellona, Minerua, Diana, dont les deux derniers se retrouvent, seuls et avec Ie meme ordre, dans la phrase de la fiche composite d' Acron ou il est justement question de la Vacuna sabine: 2. Victoria est presente deux fois dans Acron (II, 2, a et d), avec deux explications, evidemment vaines, a partir de uacare; la deuxieme mention semble signifier que Varron n'admettait pas d'autre equation que Vacuna = Victoria. 3. Dans deam uacationis (Acron: II, 2, a), uacatio a certainement une valeur plus large que Ie verbe uacare dans l'interpretation qui suit immediatement, Victoriam qua fauente curis uacamus: il doit s'agir de toutes les formes et applications de la notion de uacatio; mais sans doute n'est-ce la encore qu'une induction etymologique de quelque erudit. 4. Oeres et Venus (Acron: II, 2, a et c) ne sont donnees chacune que dans une liste; la maniere dont est introduite Venus (nonnulli etiam) semble indiquer que cette opinion est consideree comme rare et hardie. III. Outre l'antiquite romaine de Vacuna, les deux vers d'Ovide, avec leur contexte immediat, enseignent deux choses: 1. Vacuna est une deesse domestique, liee au foyer: focus, foci n'a pas d'autre emploi ni localisation; 2. Des offrandes lui sont faites dans une forme archaique, les mem­ bres de la fa mille (il ne peut s'agir que d'eux) etant debout ou assis .
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