Etymologically
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bacterium

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [bakˈteː.ri.ũː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [bakˈtɛː.ri.um][1]

Forms

bactērium n (genitive bactēriī); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek βακτήριον (baktḗrion, “small staff”), from βακτηρία (baktēría, “staff, cane”).[1][2][3] Etymonline and Köbler connect the Greek word with Proto-Indo-European *bak- (“staff”).[4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first known from the ancient glossaries, which explain it as baculum and fustis, a stick or cudgel.[5][6][2]

Semantic evolution

The Late and Medieval Latin word meant a cane or walking stick, or a shepherd's staff.[1][2] In 1838 the German naturalist Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg introduced it as a scientific term, because the first such microorganisms seen were rod-shaped; the plural bacteria entered English in 1847.[4]

Timeline

  • 1838 – Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg introduces it as a scientific term.[4]
  • 1847 – The plural is borrowed into English as bacteria.[4]
  • c. 1848 – English also uses the singular bacterium.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin, Medieval Latin) A small staff, cane or walking stick.[1][2][7][5]
  2. (New Latin, microbiology) A bacterium.[1][4]

Usage notes

Du Cange records the gloss pelvis (“basin”) for it, from Diefenbach.[8] Wiktionary gives bactērius as another form.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  3. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Goetz, Georg (1888–1923), Corpus glossariorum Latinorum, Leipzig: Teubner; vols. VI–VII Thesaurus glossarum emendatarum, digital ed. CGLO, Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  6. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  7. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  8. ^ du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre