publication

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌpʌb.lɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, /ˌpʌb.ləˈkeɪ.ʃən/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English publicacioun, borrowed from Old French publicacion and directly from Latin pūblicātiō (“a making public”),^[2][3][4] a noun of action from pūblicāre “to make public”, from pūblicus “public”.^[2][3] It is related to publish and public.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Making something publicly known, an announcement: 1387 in the OED, before 1387 in Trevisa's translation of Higden's Polychronicon according to Barnhart.^[5][3]

Semantic evolution

Issuing a book, map or engraving to the public is from 1576 (the 1570s in Etymonline),^[5][3][2] and a work so issued from 1656.^[5][3] In law, notification to those concerned is from 1590.^[5] The Latinism “making a thing public property, confiscation” is from 1611.^[5] The parallel publishment existed alongside it.^[2] In Nonconformist use in Wales, a publication was a preaching engagement.^[6]

Timeline

• 1387 – making known.^[5][3]
• 1576 – issuing a book.^[5][3]
• 1656 – a published work.^[5][3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The act of printing a book, magazine or other work and making it available.
2. A book, magazine or other work that has been published.
3. The act of making information known to the public.

Word family

• nonpublication
• prepublication
• republication

Related words

• publish
• public
• publicity

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 c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ 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)