Etymologically
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armo

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈar.moː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈar.mo][1]

Forms

armō (present infinitive armāre, perfect active armāvī, supine armātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin arma (“arms, weapons”) + -ō.[2][1] Arma is *armo-, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂(e)r-mo- (“fitting”), from the root for “to join”; its meaning went from “what is fitted together, tools” to “weapons”.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Cicero, though its participle armātus is in Plautus.[3] Cicero writes of a man who in peacetime gathered, armed and drew up a crowd.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to arm or equip someone, manus armare to take up arms, to give arms to people, as Caesar arming veterans, and to put forces in the field, as Sallust's Jugurtha mustering troops.[2] It meant to incite to war, as hopes that armed the Etruscans in Livy, and of a weapon to make up someone's arms.[2]

It meant to arm with things other than weapons, as Virgil's mother armed with torches, and figuratively to strengthen.[2] In naval language it meant to fit out a ship.[2][5] Romance kept it, as French armer, and English arm “to furnish with weapons” comes from it around 1200.[1][6]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of arming a crowd and of fitting out a ship.[4][2][7]
  • c. 50 BC – Caesar orders soldiers to be armed.[4][7]
  • 86–34 BC – Sallust uses it of mustering forces.[2][7]
  • c. 1200 – English arm (verb) is recorded.[6]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To arm, equip with weapons.[2][1]
  2. To make soldiers of, give arms to.[2]
  3. To mobilize, muster.[2][1]
  4. To incite to war, (figurative) to rouse.[2][1]
  5. (of a weapon) To form the arms of.[2]
  6. To strengthen, fortify.[2][1]
  7. To fit out, rig (a ship).[2][1]

Word family

  • armātiō
  • armātūra
  • armātus
  • coarmo
  • dearmō
  • exarmō
  • obarmō
  • perarmātus
  • perarmo
  • inarmō
  • redarmātus

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de