circumfundo

Forms

circumfundō (present infinitive circumfundere, perfect active circumfūdī, supine circumfūsum); third conjugation^[1] Virgil, Statius and Silius split it by tmesis, and Virgil, Valerius Flaccus and Statius also put circum after the verb.^[2]

Etymology

It is formed from circum- (“around”) and fundō (“to pour”).^[2][1] De Vaan derives ⟨fundō⟩ from Proto-Italic *χund- and the nasal present Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰu-n-d- (“to pour”), cognate with Ancient Greek χέω (khéō, “to pour”) and Gothic 𐌲𐌹𐌿𐍄𐌰𐌽 (giutan, “to pour”).^[3] ⟨circum⟩ is the old accusative of circus (“ring”), probably a loan from Ancient Greek κρίκος (kríkos, “ring”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Cato.^[3]

Semantic evolution

It is to pour a liquid round something, as Pliny the Elder's seeds sown with wine lees poured round, also to make seas or rivers flow round, as the Ocean that nature poured round the lands, in the elder Seneca.^[2][4][1] It is to spread something round like a fluid, as Cicero's aether poured round and enclosing all things, to drape clothes or limbs round, and figuratively to spread round, as Cicero's troubles pressing on every side.^[2][4]

In war it is to spread forces round, and in the passive or reflexive armies and crowds spread round or surround, as Caesar's archers pouring round on both sides; the passive is also to crowd round someone, as Velleius' Augustus in the embrace of Tiberius.^[2][4][1] Of water and other things it is to flow round or surround, as Cicero's “all is wrapped in darkness”, and with the ablative to enclose, as Nepos' friends who covered Agesilaus' body with wax for want of honey.^[2][4]

Timeline

• 234–149 BC – Cato.^[3][5]
• c. 100–24 BC – Nepos of a body enclosed in wax.^[2][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of the surrounding aether and of darkness.^[2][5]
• c. 50 BC – Caesar of archers spreading round.^[2][5]
• 23/24–79 AD – Pliny the Elder of lees poured round seeds.^[2][5]

Meanings

Verb

1. To pour round; to surround with liquid; to make flow round.^[2][4][1]
2. To spread round; to drape round; to embrace.^[2][4]
3. To deploy (forces) round;^[2][4][1] (passive) to crowd round, surround.^[2][4][1]
4. To flow round, envelop; to enclose (with).^[2][4]
5. To overwhelm.^[1]

Word family

• circumfusio

Related words

• fundō
• cōnfundō
• diffundō
• circumdō
• circus

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 o Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d 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 d e f g h i Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de