titular

titular¹ holder; headline

Etymology tree of titular¹

inherited borrowed derived

Latin titulus

French titre

German Titel

Italian titolo

Spanish título

Spanish titular

From the same root · titular¹

English tittle ← titulus

Latin titulāris ← titulus

Italian sottotitolo ← titolo

Pronunciation

• /tituˈlaɾ/, [t̪i.t̪uˈlaɾ]^[1]

Forms

titular m or f (masculine and feminine plural titulares)^[1]

Etymology

The adjective and noun for the holder of a title is from Spanish título + -ar, or a learned borrowing borrowed from Late Latin titulāris: Wiktionary gives both possibilities.^[1] Vox calls it a derivative of título, while Autoridades and Echegaray took it from the Latin adjective.^[2][3][4] Corominas lists the adjective among the derivatives of that noun without a date.^[5][6]

The Latin adjective is formed from titulus (“inscription, title”) with the suffix -āris.^[1] The same word is French titulaire, which the DHLF dates from 1516 and calls a learned derivative of the Latin noun, Italian titolare, Catalan titular and Portuguese titular.^[7][4][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

A document from Chile of 1642 speaks of officials who were titulares, that is, who held their posts by title.^[9] In New Granada in 1683 the Virgin is called la titular y patrona of a village, the saint who gives the church its name.^[9]

Semantic evolution

Autoridades (1739) defined the adjective as “having a title by which it is named, or giving its own name as a title to something else”, with the example of a parish whose church is named after Saint Mary.^[3] Terreros added the noun for a person who holds an office or benefice by title, and one who holds the title of a dignity without its possession.^[10] The Academy added the printing term letra titular, a capital letter for titles and headings, in 1869, and in 1899 the doctor or pharmacist who holds a post as of right.^[11][12]

The modern dictionaries add the holder of a document or right, such as a bank account, the player who starts a match, and in the plural the headlines of a newspaper.^[13][14] Román noted in Chile the liturgical sense, the saint or mystery that gives a church its name.^[15]

Timeline

• 1642 – titulares for officials who hold their posts by title, in Chile.^[9]
• 1683 – the Virgin is the titular y patrona of a village in New Granada.^[9]
• 1739 – the adjective is defined in Autoridades.^[3]
• 1786–1793 – Terreros has the noun for the holder of an office or benefice.^[10]
• 1869 – the Academy records the printing sense, letra titular.^[11]
• 1899 – the doctor or pharmacist who holds a post as of right.^[12]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Holding an office or profession by official title or appointment, as in profesor titular; also used as a noun.^[13][1]
2. Having in one's name a document or title that grants a right, property or obligation; as a noun, the holder of an account or card.^[13][14]
3. Of a saint or a divine person, giving the name to a church; as a noun, the patron saint.^[13]
4. (sports) Of a player, regularly in the starting line-up; as a noun, a starter.^[13][1]

Noun

1. (usually in the plural) A headline, a title in large type in a newspaper or magazine: La noticia abrió los titulares de la mañana.^[13][1]
2. (feminine, printing) A capital letter used for titles.^[13]
3. (feminine, rare) The post of the municipal doctor or pharmacist of a place.^[13][14]

titular² to entitle

Pronunciation

• /tituˈlaɾ/, [t̪i.t̪uˈlaɾ]^[1]

Forms

titular (first-person singular present titulo, first-person singular preterite titulé, past participle titulado)^[1]

Etymology

The verb is borrowed from Latin titulāre (“to give a title to, to call”).^[13][14][1] Vox dates the borrowing to the 13th century.^[2] Corominas places it among the derivatives of título, with the early form titolar “to call, to name” in the Libro de Apolonio.^[5][6] Wiktionary calls tildar its doublet.^[1]

The Latin verb is formed from titulus (“inscription, title”); the OLD has it in an inscription for engraving an inscription, and Lewis and Short call it post-classical in the sense “to give a title to, to call”.^[16][17] Medieval Latin used it for writing down, naming and dedicating a church to a saint.^[18] The same verb is Catalan titular, Portuguese titular and Italian titolare.^[19][20][21]

Earliest recorded meaning

Corominas's first record is the Libro de Apolonio (about 1250), where titolar means “to call, to name”.^[5][6] The Libro de los doce sabios (c. 1237, known from a copy of about 1400) says that the tomb of King Ferdinand should be titulada, inscribed, with the sayings of each of the wise men.^[22][23]

Semantic evolution

Autoridades (1739) has the verb for putting a title, name or inscription on something, and as an intransitive verb for obtaining a title of count or marquis from the king, with a line of Quevedo.^[3] Salvá added the pronominal use, “to bear the title of an office or decoration”.^[24] The Academy gave the etymology from Latin titulare in 1884.^[25] Today the verb also means, in chemistry, to titrate a solution, and titularse is to bear a title, or to obtain an academic degree.^[13][14]

Timeline

• c. 1250 – titolar “to call, to name” in the Libro de Apolonio.^[5][6]
• 1550 – the first record from the Americas, in La Paz.^[9]
• 1739 – Autoridades records the sense “to obtain a title of nobility”.^[3]
• 1884 – the Academy derives it from Latin.^[25]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive) To give a title, name or inscription to something; to entitle: Tituló su novela con una frase de su abuela.^[13][1]
2. (intransitive) To obtain a title of nobility.^[13]
3. (intransitive, chemistry) To titrate, to measure the strength of a solution.^[13][1]
4. (pronominal) To have a given title or name: La película se titula así.^[13][14]
5. (pronominal) To obtain an academic degree.^[13]

Word family

• autotitularse
• titulación
• titulado