Etymologically
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panel

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈpæn.əl/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English panel,[2] borrowed from Old French panel (“piece of cloth, saddle cushion”) (modern panneau),[3][4][5] from Vulgar Latin *pannellus, a diminutive of Latin pannus “piece of cloth”,[3][4][2] the source of pane.[3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A list of jurors, the jury itself: 1292 in the OED,[6] about 1378 in Barnhart, in Piers Plowman.[4] A saddle cloth or pad: before 1300 in the OED, before 1325 in Barnhart, in Cursor Mundi.[6][4] A piece of cloth: the early 14th century in Etymonline.[3]

Semantic evolution

In Anglo-French legal use a panel was the slip of parchment on which the sheriff wrote the names of jurors, hence the jury itself,[3][4][5][7] and the general sense, a group of persons called to advise, judge or discuss, is from the 1570s,[3][6] or 1934, in Shaw, in Barnhart.[4] A section of a fence is from the 15th century,[5] and a distinct part of the surface of a wall or door from about 1600, in Shakespeare's As You Like It.[3][4] A thin board for painting on is from the 18th century.[5] The verb meant to empanel a jury in 1451,[4][6] and to furnish a room with panels from the 1630s.[3][4] Panelist is from 1952, American English.[4] Old slang panel house was a brothel with sliding panels, used for robbing customers.[3] In Scotland the panel is the dock in a court, or the accused.[8]

Timeline

  • 1292 – a jury list.[6]
  • a. 1300 – a saddle cloth.[6]
  • 1451 – verb, to empanel.[4][6]
  • 1570s – a group of advisers.[3]
  • 1600 – a section of a wall or door.[4]
  • 1630s – verb, to furnish with panels.[3]
  • 1952 – panelist.[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A flat, usually rectangular piece forming part of a door, wall or other surface.
  2. A group of people gathered to discuss, judge or advise: a panel of experts.
  3. A jury, or a list of people summoned for jury service.
  4. A board with the controls or instruments of a machine or vehicle: instrument panel.
  5. A section of fabric in a garment.

Verb

  1. To cover or decorate with panels.
  2. To select a jury; to empanel.

Word family

  • panelboard
  • repanel
  • subpanel
  • modesty panel
  • panel discussion
  • panel house
  • panel saw
  • panel strip
  • pane
  • empanel
  • panelist

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ a b c d e Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  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)