proclamation

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English proclamacioun,^[2][3][4] borrowed from Anglo-Norman proclamacion and Middle French proclamation, recorded in French from 1320,^[5][4] and directly borrowed from Latin prōclāmātiō (“a calling out, outcry”),^[5][2][3][6] which in post-classical Latin also meant a public announcement, frequently in British sources from the 12th century.^[5] The Latin noun is formed from the past participial stem of prōclāmō (“to cry out”) and the suffix -iō;^[5][6] the verb, the source of proclaim, is formed from prō- (“forth”) and clāmō (“to cry out”), from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- (“to shout”).^[2] The Anglo-Norman word is recorded from the late 13th century for a royal proclamation and for a writ ordering one.^[7] The OED compares Old Occitan proclamation (14th century) and Italian proclamazione (1554).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Both a formal order of a monarch or other legal authority made public, and the official act of giving public notice: before 1325, in the Statutes of the Realm.^[5] The first quotation in the Middle English Dictionary is from the Rolls of Parliament in 1386,^[3] and Etymonline dates the word to the late 14th century.^[2]

Semantic evolution

The word belonged from the start to the language of government and law: in Middle English one could make proclamacioun to announce something publicly or to call a court into session.^[3] Johnson (1755) defined it as publication by authority, and as a declaration of the king's will openly published among the people.^[8] From 1561 it was also used of denouncing someone by public notice, as in declaring a person an outlaw or a district under special law,^[5] and since about 1616, in Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part 3, of the formal announcement of a monarch's accession.^[5][9] Legal phrases followed: proclamation of a fine (1483–84) and proclamation of rebellion (1607), now historical.^[5] An extended sense, an open declaration or obvious display of something, was used from 1567 to 1616.^[5]

Timeline

• before 1325 – a formal public order; the act of proclaiming.^[5]
• 1386 – first quotation in the Middle English Dictionary.^[3]
• 1483–84 – law, proclamation of a fine.^[5]
• 1561 – public denunciation, as of an outlaw.^[5]
• 1567 – open declaration or display (obsolete after 1616).^[5]
• 1607 – law, proclamation of rebellion.^[5]
• before 1616 – the formal announcement of a monarch's accession.^[5]
• 1846 – as a verb, to coerce by proclamations (obsolete after 1864).^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. An official, formal public announcement, such as a decree or edict issued by a head of state: The governor issued a proclamation declaring a day of mourning.^[4][5]
2. The act of proclaiming something, or the state of being proclaimed.^[4][9][5]
3. The formal announcement of a monarch's accession.^[5][9]
4. (law, historical) A public notice in court, as in proclamation of a fine or proclamation of rebellion.^[5]

Related words

• proclaim
• claim
• clamour
• acclamation
• declamation
• exclamation
• proclamatory

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
4. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
9. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press