Line 270
ὡσπερεὶ γέροντας ἡμᾶς καὶ κοβαλικεύεται;
The verb κοβαλικεύεται is a hapax legomenon in Aristophanic comedy and is unique in the surviving corpus of ancient Greek literature. Derived from κόβαλος (a type of comic mask or a specific type of rustic dancer/actor), the verb denotes the act of acting the part of a kobalos or behaving in a grotesque, buffoonish manner. Its use here by the Chorus to describe the actions of the Sausage-Seller (or the Paphlagonian, depending on the specific staging context of this line) suggests a specific theatrical allusion to the physical, often acrobatic and degrading, movements associated with the kobalos character, rather than a generic term for mockery. The form is deponent in the present, though the root implies an active performance of a role.
Knights. Aristophanes. . 2026-09-08.