Etymologically
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clarifico

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [kɫaːˈrɪ.fɪ.koː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [klaˈriː.fi.ko][1]

Forms

clārificō (present infinitive clārificāre, perfect active clārificāvī, supine clārificātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin clārus (“clear, bright, famous”) + -ficō (“to make”).[1] Lewis & Short, Georges and Gaffiot derive it from the adjective and faciō (“to make”);[2][3][4] the TLL compares clārificus and magnificō, and Etymonline takes the verb from that adjective.[5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLL says that the word was taken up from the Itala, the Old Latin Bible, and that apart from single passages in Marcellus' medical work and the Latin Oribasius it occurs only in Church writers.[5][7] The Itala has it in Isaiah, nunc clārificābor, “now I shall be glorified”, as Cyprian quotes the passage.[5]

Semantic evolution

Its proper sense was to make bright: Cyprian has clārificātō diē, when the day had grown light,[5][8] Ambrose says that the sun makes the day bright,[5] and Gregory of Tours tells of a blind man who began to see clārificātīs oculīs, with his eyes made clear.[5] Lactantius uses it of making one's name famous by some great deed.[2][4]

Above all it rendered the biblical “glorify”: the Vulgate's John has nunc clārificātus est fīlius hominis, “now is the Son of man glorified”,[5][4] and Christian writers used it for the glorification of Christ and of the just, and in the sense to praise, extol.[5][9][3]

In Medieval Latin it also meant to make liquids and other substances clear, as when a syrup is clarified with white of egg, to sharpen the sight and to make the voice clear and loud, besides to glorify or make famous.[10][11] English clarify came from it through Old French in the early 14th century, first meaning “make illustrious, glorify”.[6]

Timeline

  • after 220 AD – The Itala uses it in Isaiah.[5][7]
  • beginning of 3rd century–258 AD – Cyprian uses it of the day growing light.[5][8][7]
  • c. 250–317 AD – Lactantius uses it of making a name famous.[2][7]
  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it for “glorify” in John.[5][4][7]
  • 538/539–594 AD – Gregory of Tours tells of a blind man's eyes made clear.[5][7]
  • early 14th century – English clarify is recorded, meaning “glorify”.[6]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (Late Latin) To make bright, light up, make clear.[5][8][10]
  2. (Late Latin) To make illustrious or famous.[2][4][1]
  3. (Ecclesiastical Latin) To glorify (Christ, the saints); to extol, praise.[5][9][3][4]
  4. (Medieval Latin) To clarify, make clear or limpid (liquids, syrups).[10]
  5. (Medieval Latin) To sharpen (the sight); to make (the voice) clear and loud.[10]

Word family

  • clārificātiō

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  4. ^ a b c d e f Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  6. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  8. ^ a b c Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  10. ^ a b c d Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  11. ^ Bartal, Antal, et al. (1987–), Lexicon Latinitatis Medii Aevi Hungariae, Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; online ed. ELTE