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cultivation

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Etymology and origin of the English word cultivation

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1553 J. Brende, translation of Quintus Curtius
Borrowed from
Middle French cultivation
Ultimate origin
Latin colō

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌkʌltɪˈveɪʃ(ə)n/, /ˌkʌltəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/[1]
  • US: /ˌkʌltəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French cultivation,[2][3][4] a noun of action from cultiver,[2] or it was formed in English from the past participial stem of Medieval Latin cultivō (“to till”), with the suffix -ion; the OED gives both, since the French word is first recorded only in 1566.[4] The Medieval Latin verb comes from cultivus (“tilled”),[4][2] from Latin cultus (“care, labour; cultivation”), the past participle of colō (“to till, cultivate; to inhabit”).[2] Comparable words are Spanish cultivación (1576), Portuguese cultivação (1609) and Italian coltivazione (1513–21).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The preparing and use of land for growing crops; tillage: 1553, in John Brende's translation of Quintus Curtius.[4][5] The dates in other dictionaries are later: Random House gives 1690–1700,[6] Etymonline 1700, for a figurative sense,[2] and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate about 1716.[7]

Semantic evolution

The figurative senses arose early: the refining of a person or the mind by education is recorded from 1622, close attention to a branch of study from 1639, and the resulting refinement or culture from 1662.[4] They belong to a pattern of describing education in terms of farming that the Historical Thesaurus traces back to the 15th century.[8] The growing of plants is recorded from 1637,[4] although Etymonline dates it to 1719 and the tilling of land to 1725.[2] Johnson (1755) gave two senses, the art of improving soils and plants, and improvement in general.[9] From 1737 cultivation was the fostering of a friendship, from 1793 also courting a person's favour, now often with a hint of flattery.[4] The raising of animals and fish followed in 1791;[4] from 1881 biologists used it for growing microorganisms or cells, like culture.[4]

Timeline

  • 1553 – tillage of the land.[4][5]
  • 1622 – refining a person or the mind by education.[4]
  • 1637 – the growing of plants.[4]
  • 1639 – devotion to a branch of study.[4]
  • 1662 – refinement, culture.[4]
  • 1737 – the developing of a friendship.[4]
  • 1757 – cultivated land.[4]
  • 1791 – the raising of animals.[4]
  • 1881 – biology, the growing of microorganisms or cells.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The preparing and working of land to grow crops; tillage: Much of the valley is now under cultivation.[10][5][4]
  2. The growing and tending of plants or crops.[10][4]
  3. The raising of animals, or the growing of microorganisms or cells; culture.[4][5]
  4. The development of the mind, taste or manners by education and training.[10][5][4]
  5. Culture or refinement, especially social sophistication.[10][7][4]
  6. The careful fostering of a friendship or relationship, or of a person's favour.[5][4]
  7. The pursuit or study of a branch of learning or an art.[5][4]

Word family

  • noncultivation
  • overcultivation
  • precultivation
  • recultivation
  • self-cultivation
  • uncultivation

References

  1. ^ a b 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. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Mapping Metaphor with the Historical Thesaurus, University of Glasgow, mappingmetaphor.arts.gla.ac.uk
  9. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  10. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Cultivation.” Etymologically, 26 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/cultivation. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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