fiscal

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɪskəl/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French fiscal or directly fiscālis (“of the state treasury”),^[2][3][4] from fiscus (“treasury, purse; originally a basket of twigs”), of unknown origin (see fisc).^[2][3][4] MWU compares Greek πίθος (píthos, “wine jar”).^[5] The etymological idea is the public purse.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or relating to a state treasury: 1563, in John Foxe's Book of Martyrs;^[2][6] the 1560s in Etymonline.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The general sense, financial, is from 1865, in American English, abstracted from phrases such as fiscal year.^[2][3][6] As a noun, a fiscal was a treasury official (1652) and, from 1539 in Spain, Italy and their colonies, a legal officer;^[6][5] in Scotland the procurator fiscal is a public prosecutor.^[7][8]

Timeline

• 1539 – a legal official (noun).^[6][5]
• 1563 – relating to a treasury.^[2][6]
• 1865 – financial; fiscal year.^[6][3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Of or relating to government revenue, spending and debt, especially taxation.
2. Of or relating to finance: the fiscal year.

Noun

1. In some countries, a public prosecutor; in Scotland, short for procurator fiscal.

Word family

• fiscally
• nonfiscal
• fiscal year

Related words

• confiscate
• fisc

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
8. ^ 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)