investigador

Forms

investigador (feminine investigadora, masculine plural investigadores, feminine plural investigadoras)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin investīgātor (“one who searches out, investigator”), from investīgō (“to track down, search out”) with the agent suffix -tor.^[2][1][3][4] Corominas lists it, without a date, among the derivatives of investigar (c. 1440).^[5][6]

The Latin verb is formed from in- and vestīgō (“to follow the trail, search out”), which goes with vestīgium (“footprint, track”); de Vaan considers it uncertain which of the two is the base of the other.^[1][4][7] Wiktionary suggests that the noun comes from an earlier *verstīgium, from the root of verrō (“to sweep”).^[1]

The same word is Portuguese investigador, first recorded in 1532 as enuestigador, Catalan investigador, French investigateur and Italian investigatore.^[8][9][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest record in Boyd-Bowman's Léxico hispanoamericano is from Chile in 1614, as an adjective: poco investigadores de secretos de Naturaleza, “little given to inquiring into Nature's secrets”.^[10]

Semantic evolution

Autoridades defines an investigador as one who investigates or makes inquiries, especially with too much curiosity and care, and quotes Argensola's history of the Moluccas on los más curiosos investigadores.^[3] A writer in Lima in 1792 calls himself muy investigador y curioso.^[10] The Academy's dictionary of 1899 defines it as “that investigates”, also used as a noun.^[11]

The modern sense of a person devoted to scientific research is the one Moliner singles out, and the DTME adds that it is often used loosely for “scientist”.^[12][13] An investigador privado is a private detective.^[14] In Cuba investigador agregado, auxiliar and titular are the ranks of the scientific career.^[15]

Timeline

• 1614 – first record, in Chile.^[10]
• 1726–1739 – Autoridades defines it, with a quotation from Argensola.^[3]
• 1792 – an example from Lima.^[10]
• 1899 – the Academy's dictionary gives it as an adjective also used as a noun.^[11]

Meanings

Adjective

1. That investigates; investigative, of research: un equipo investigador.^[2][14][1]

Noun

1. A researcher, especially a scientist: Una investigadora del hospital publicó el estudio.^[12][13][1]
2. An investigator;^[14][1] investigador privado, a private detective.^[14][1]
3. (Cuba) In investigador agregado, auxiliar and titular, the lowest, middle and highest ranks of the scientific career.^[15]

Related words

• investigar
• investigación
• vestigio
• Latin investigator

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. investigador
3. ^ a b c Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. 4, 303
4. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 5, 795
6. ^ Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. vestigio
7. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
8. ^ Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. investigador
9. ^ Alcover, Antoni M.; Moll, Francesc de B. (1930–1962), Diccionari català-valencià-balear, 10 vols., Palma de Mallorca: Moll, p. s.v. investigador
10. ^ a b c d Boyd-Bowman, Peter (2003), Léxico hispanoamericano 1493–1993, ed. Ray Harris-Northall and John J. Nitti, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, p. s.v. investigador
11. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1899), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 13th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de los Sres. Hernando y Compañía, p. 566
12. ^ a b Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. investigador
13. ^ a b Real Academia Nacional de Medicina (2011), Diccionario de términos médicos, Madrid: Editorial Médica Panamericana; online at https://dtme.ranm.es, p. s.v. investigador
14. ^ a b c d Battaner Arias, Paz (dir.) (2017), Diccionario general de la lengua española VOX, Barcelona: Larousse Editorial, p. s.v. investigador
15. ^ a b Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2010), Diccionario de americanismos, Lima: Santillana; online at https://www.asale.org/damer, p. s.v. investigador