Etymologically
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comestabilis

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Forms

comestabilis m (genitive comestabilis); third declension[1][2][3] The more common form is comestabulus (genitive comestabulī), second declension.[1][4] Its spellings include constabulus, conestabulus, conestablus, conestalus, commestabulus and conostabulus.[1][4][5][6] The third-declension form is also spelled conestabilis, constabilis, cognistabilis and contestabilis.[1][6][2]

Etymology

It is a medieval form of the Late Latin title comes (“companion; count”) stabulī (“of the stable”), “count of the stable”, that is the chief groom, an office the Theodosian Code already names.[1][5][3][7] Etymonline thinks the title is probably a loan-translation of a Germanic word.[7] The chronicle of Regino, under the year 807, calls this officer the count of the stable, “whom we corruptly call ⟨comestabulus⟩”.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the chronicle of Fredegar, where Guntram sends Leudisclus, the comestabulus, with an army.[1][4]

Semantic evolution

At Frankish and later royal courts it was a high office: the commander of the royal army and one of the chief officers of the household, named beside the steward and the chamberlain.[1][5] Robert of Torigni calls Richard de Humet the constable of King Henry of England, and the title was used in the kingdoms of Sicily and Jerusalem.[1] A bishop could have a comestabulus among his officers.[1]

Lower down it named the commander of a district, town or castle, as the great constables of Apulia, and the leader of a troop of soldiers.[1] In England it was the constable or warden of a castle, the constable of France, and later a constable of the peace;[6] in a monastery it was the keeper of the stables.[1] Neo-Latin writers used comestabilis for the high commanders of Castile and Sicily.[2][3] English constable, first a chief household officer, came from it through Old French.[7]

Timeline

  • 613–658 – Fredegar's chronicle names a comestabulus sent with an army.[1][4]
  • 1085 – An English charter names a cognistabilis of Earl Roger.[6]
  • 1168 – A charter of the Teutonic Order has the form conestabilis.[1]
  • before 1186 – Robert of Torigni calls Richard de Humet the constable of King Henry of England.[1][4]
  • c. 1200 – English constable appears, for a chief household officer.[7]
  • 1526 – A Polish source names the comestabilis of Castile beside the Duke of Alba.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Medieval Latin) The count of the stable, master of the horse; a high officer of a royal court and commander of the king's army; a constable.[1][5][6][4][8]
  2. (Medieval Latin) The commander of a district, town or castle; a castle warden.[1][6]
  3. (Medieval Latin) The leader of a troop of soldiers.[1]
  4. (Medieval Latin) An officer of a bishop; the keeper of a monastery's stables.[1]
  5. (Medieval Latin) A constable of the peace.[6]
  6. (New Latin) A high military commander, as the constable of Castile.[2][3]

Usage notes

The derivative constabulārius (also conestabulārius) was used in the same senses.[1][5] Stelten records a separate adjective comestabilis “eatable”.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  2. ^ a b c d Ramminger, Johann, Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, www.neulatein.de
  3. ^ a b c d e Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl
  4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b c d e Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
  9. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson