Etymologically
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covenant

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈkʌv.ən.ənt/, /ˈkʌv.nənt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English covenaunt, borrowed from Old French covenant (“agreement, pact, promise”) (12th century), later convenant,[2][3][4][5] the present participle of covenir (“to agree, meet”) used as a noun,[2][3][6][7][8] from conveniō (“to come together, agree”),[2][3][9] formed from com-, "together", and veniō (“to come”).[2] The Anglo-Norman covenant (“agreement, contract”) is recorded from the early 12th century.[10] As a biblical word it renders the Hebrew word for a contract, which the Septuagint translated as Ancient Greek διαθήκη (diathḗkē) and the Vulgate as foedus, pactum or testāmentum.[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

A mutual agreement between people to do or not to do something; a contract or bargain: Barnhart's first example, probably before 1300, is in Kyng Alisaunder;[3] the OED dates the word to 1297,[4] and Etymonline to about 1300.[2]

Semantic evolution

Ayto traces the idea of agreement to a literal "coming together".[9] The legal sense, a formal agreement or promise with legal force, especially one under seal, is recorded from c1330 in Robert Mannyng;[4][7] from before 1616 (Shakespeare's Cymbeline) it was also a clause in a deed, such as a lease.[4] The biblical sense, an engagement made by God with people, appears in the Wycliffite Bible (a1382), and Hoad dates the divine covenant to the 13th century;[4][7] from it came the names of the Old and New Covenants (1587) and the theologians' Covenant of Works and Covenant of Grace (a1640).[4] In Scottish history the Covenant was any of the bonds that Presbyterians signed to defend their religion, especially the National Covenant of 1638 and the Solemn League and Covenant of 1643, whose signers were the Covenanters.[12][11] The verb, to agree formally, is recorded from about 1300.[3][4][2] In Ayrshire covenant meant wages paid without food.[13]

Timeline

  • 1297 – a mutual agreement, a contract.[4]
  • c1330 – (law) a formal agreement with legal force.[4]
  • c1330 – verb, to agree formally.[4]
  • a1382 – God's covenant with people.[4]
  • 1587 – the Old and New Covenants.[4]
  • a1616 – a clause in a deed or lease.[4]
  • 1638 – the Scottish National Covenant.[12][11]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A formal, solemn and binding agreement; a compact or contract.
  2. (law) A written agreement under seal, such as a promise to pay a yearly sum to a charity.
  3. (law) A clause in such an agreement, especially in a lease or deed: The house is subject to a covenant forbidding commercial use.
  4. (Bible) The agreement between God and the people of Israel, or between God and humankind.
  5. (Scottish history; usually Covenant) Any of the bonds made by Scottish Presbyterians to defend their religion, especially in 1638 and 1643.

Verb

  1. To agree formally or solemnly; to promise by a covenant: The tenants covenanted to keep the garden in good order.
  2. To lay down as a condition of an agreement; to stipulate.

Word family

  • covenantal
  • covenantally
  • covenanter
  • covenantor
  • Ark of the Covenant
  • New Covenant
  • Old Covenant
  • covenant of warranty

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  7. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Skeat, Walter W. (1911), A Concise Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, new ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ a b Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
  10. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  11. ^ a b c Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
  12. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  13. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)