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historian

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /hɪˈstɔːɹɪən/, /hɪˈstɔəɹɪən/ (UK); /hɪˈstɔɹi.ən/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French historien,[2][3] from Latin historia (“narrative of past events”) (see history),[4][2] with a French suffix modelled on words such as logicien.[5] Etymonline treats it as if from a Medieval Latin *historiānus.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

An author of history: the mid-15th century in Etymonline, the 15th century in Merriam-Webster;[4][2] the OED's first quotation is from 1531.[6]

Semantic evolution

As a writer of history in the higher sense, distinguished from an annalist or chronicler, it is from the 1530s.[4][6] A teller of a narrative or tale is from 1586,[6] and a person versed in history from about 1645.[6] Old English words for the idea were þēodwita and wyrdwritere.[4]

Timeline

  • mid-15th century – an author of history.[4]
  • 1531 – a writer of history.[6]
  • 1586 – a storyteller.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A person who writes or studies history, especially an expert in it.
  2. A person who keeps a chronological record of events; a chronicler.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  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