41

The study of the Thessalian epitaphs of the sixth and fifth centuries BCE written in epichoric alphabet shows that the datives used for the name of the deceased are associated with the substantives στάλα, μνᾶμα, μνάμειον, σᾶμα and with verbs such as ἔσστᾱσε, ὀνεθε̄κε or even the simple ἔμμι. Such phrases expressed that the burial or the funeral monument had been attributed to the deceased. These inscriptions also use various phrases to describe relationships of kinship with the deceased. The patronymic adjective in -αιος / -ειος is however little used and there is no known example of the word κίουν or of the formula Ἑρμάου Χθονίου, while these three elements are unanimously considered to be characteristic of the Thessalian dialect.