luego

Etymology

It is inherited from Vulgar Latin locō (“immediately”), the ablative of the Latin noun for “place” used as an adverb.^[2][3][4][1] Corominas explains it as a renewal of classical ilicō (“on the spot, immediately”), a compound of in (“in”) and the same ablative, literally “in the place, right there”: Vulgar Latin restored the compound to its original parts and then shortened it to the bare ablative.^[4][3][5] It is thus a doublet of locus.^[1]

The same adverb gives Old French lues and Portuguese logo;^[4][6] Old Leonese had lugo and llugo, and Asturian lluego is Asturian.^[4][6] The noun itself survived in Old Leonese logo (“place”), in a charter of 965, but Spanish replaced it by lugar, from locālis, because a phrase meaning “in another place” could be taken for one with the adverb, especially when it meant “then”.^[4]

Covarrubias cited Father Guadix's view that the word was Arabic and meant “at the hour”, and the Diccionario de Autoridades repeated it.^[7][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Glosas Emilianenses of the mid-10th century write lueco, glossing Latin repente “suddenly”.^[4][3] In the Cantar de mio Cid (c. 1140, known from a 14th-century copy) it means “at once, without delay”: „llegó a Santa María, luego descavalga” “he reached Saint Mary's church and at once dismounts”.^[9][10]

Semantic evolution

The etymological sense “at once” long remained the main one: Nebrija gives Latin statim and ilico, and it is still preferred in Chile.^[4][11] The sense “afterwards” can already be seen in Berceo, but Corominas regards it and “therefore” as secondary senses, general from the Golden Age on.^[4][3] Autoridades gives all three, the last with Quevedo's Esto no puede ser, luego lo contrario es forzosa verdad “this cannot be, therefore the opposite must be true”.^[8] The proclitic variant lugo is found in Berceo and the Primera Crónica General, is frequent in Juan del Encina, and survives in Judeo-Spanish and Aragonese speech.^[4]

In the Americas luego means “soon” in Chile and “sometimes, now and then” in Colombia, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.^{[4][12][13][14]} Mexican luego luego means “right away”, and in El Salvador the word also means “early”.^[15][2] The Academy's dictionaries of 1884 and 1899 noted that, unlike después, it was not construed with de.^[16][17]

Timeline

• c. 950 – the Glosas Emilianenses have the form lueco.^[4][3]
• c. 1140 – the Cantar de mio Cid uses luego for “at once”.^[9][10]
• 1208 – the Cortes de León have the conjunction luego que “as soon as”.^[9]
• 1250–1279 – Alfonso X's Lapidario uses it both for “promptly” and for “afterwards”.^[18]
• 1513 – Nebrija gives Latin statim, ilico and ilicet.^[11]
• 1515 – the first record from the Americas, in Tierra Firme: luego a la hora “straight away”.^[19]
• 1611 – Covarrubias reports Guadix's Arabic etymology.^[7]
• 1726–1739 – the Diccionario de Autoridades gives “at once”, “afterwards” and “therefore”.^[8]
• 1843 – the Academy's dictionary first lists the conjunction “therefore”.^[20]
• 1869 – the Academy's dictionary records con tres luegos “in a great hurry”.^[21]
• 1884 – the Academy's dictionary first gives an etymology, from Latin loco.^[16]

Meanings

Adverb

1. afterwards, later: Primero cenamos y luego vimos una película.^[2][1]
2. Further on in space: Primero está la farmacia y luego el banco.^[15][22]
3. (dated, Latin America) At once, without delay; soon.^[2][1]
4. (El Salvador) Early in the day; quickly.^[2]
5. (Mexico, Colombia, Dominican Republic) sometimes, now and then.^[13][14][12]

Conjunction

1. therefore, so: No contesta, luego no está en casa.^[2][1]

Word family

• desde luego
• hasta luego

Related words

• lugar
• local
• locus
• Portuguese logo

Usage notes

As an adverb luego is stressed, as a conjunction unstressed.^[15] Desde luego means “of course”, and hasta luego is a common goodbye between people who expect to meet again soon.^[15][5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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. luego
3. ^ a b c d e Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. luego
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 3, 710
5. ^ a b Gómez de Silva, Guido (1988), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua española, México: Fondo de Cultura Económica / El Colegio de México, p. s.v. luego
6. ^ a b García de Diego, Vicente (1985), Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico, 2nd ed., Madrid: Espasa-Calpe (1st ed. 1954), p. s.v. locus
7. ^ a b Covarrubias Orozco, Sebastián de (1611), Tesoro de la lengua castellana o española, Madrid: Luis Sánchez (Biblioteca Wordkers transcription, CC BY 4.0), p. 1094
8. ^ a b c Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. 4, 436
9. ^ a b c Real Academia Española (2013–), Corpus del Diccionario histórico de la lengua española (CDH), version 3.1, https://apps.rae.es/CNDHE, p. s.v. luego
10. ^ a b Menéndez Pidal, Ramón (1908–1911), Cantar de Mio Cid: texto, gramática y vocabulario, 3 vols., Madrid: Bailly-Baillière, p. 330
11. ^ a b Nebrija, Antonio de (1513), Vocabulario español-latino, Salamanca, ed. Marina Vidal Díez (2007), Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes, p. 373
12. ^ a b Academia Puertorriqueña de la Lengua Española; Universidad de Puerto Rico, Tesoro lexicográfico del español de Puerto Rico, https://tesoro.pr, p. s.v. luego
13. ^ 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. luego
14. ^ a b Academia Dominicana de la Lengua; Instituto Guzmán Ariza de Lexicografía (2024), Diccionario del español dominicano, 2nd ed., online at https://ded.igalex.org, p. s.v. luego
15. ^ a b c d Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. luego
16. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1884), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 12th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de D. Gregorio Hernando (the first Academy edition with etymologies), p. 653
17. ^ Real Academia Española (1899), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 13th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de los Sres. Hernando y Compañía, p. 611
18. ^ Kasten, Lloyd A.; Nitti, John J.; Gago Jover, Francisco (2002–), Diccionario de la prosa castellana del Rey Alfonso X, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies (electronic edition 2024), p. s.v. luego
19. ^ 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. luego
20. ^ Real Academia Española (1843), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 9th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de D. Francisco María Fernández, p. 445
21. ^ Real Academia Española (1869), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 11th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de Don Manuel Rivadeneyra, p. 473
22. ^ Battaner Arias, Paz (dir.) (2017), Diccionario general de la lengua española VOX, Barcelona: Larousse Editorial, p. s.v. luego