demon

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈdiː.mən/^[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English, borrowed from Latin daemon (“spirit”), in Late Latin daemōn, dēmōn, an evil spirit,^[2][3] from Greek δαίμων (daímōn, “deity, divine power, lesser god, guiding spirit”),^[4][2][5] probably originally one who distributes destinies, related to δαίεσθαι (daíesthai, “to divide, allot”),^[2][3] from Proto-Indo-European *da-, to divide.^[4] In the evil sense it also represents Latin daemonium, Ancient Greek δαιμόνιον (daimónion).^[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

An evil spirit, a devil: about 1200, probably in Layamon's Brut.^[4][2]

Semantic evolution

Greek daimones were not evil:^[5] the malignant sense comes from the use of the word, with daimonion, in Christian translations and the Septuagint for the gods of the heathens.^[4][5] An attendant or indwelling spirit, a genius, is from 1387,^[8] and a supernatural being of Greek mythology between gods and men from 1569.^[8] Applied to a cruel or malignant person it is from 1614,^[8] to an evil passion such as drink from 1712,^[8] and to someone of extraordinary energy or skill, a demon for work, from 1876.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 1200 – an evil spirit.^[4]
• 1387 – an attendant spirit.^[8]
• 1569 – a Greek divinity.^[8]
• 1614 – a cruel person.^[8]
• 1712 – an evil passion.^[8]
• 1876 – a person of great energy.^[8]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. An evil supernatural being; a devil.
2. A person, habit or obsession that is cruel or persistently tormenting.
3. A person who is extremely skilful, energetic or zealous.
4. An attendant spirit or genius, also spelled daemon; in Greek religion, a lesser deity.

Word family

• demonian
• demonization
• demonic
• demonism
• demonize
• demonography
• demonology
• speed demon

Related words

• cacodemon
• demoniac
• demonolater
• demonolatry
• eudemon
• daemon
• pandemonium
• devil

Usage notes

In Australian slang of the late 19th century, a demon was a police officer or detective, apparently from Van Diemen's Land, the old name of Tasmania.^[9]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press