confessio

Pronunciation

• Classical: [kõːˈfɛs.si.oː]^[1]
• Ecclesiastical: [koɱˈfɛs.si.o]^[1]

Forms

cōnfessiō f (genitive cōnfessiōnis); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin cōnfiteor (“to confess”) + -tiō.^[2][3][4][5] De Vaan derives fateor (“to admit”) from Proto-Italic *fat-ē- and Proto-Indo-European *bʰh₂-to- (“spoken”), cognate with Oscan fatíum (“to speak”); he reports Ernout and Meillet's view that ⟨cōnfiteor⟩ and ⟨prōfiteor⟩ are older than the simple verb.^[6] Albertus Magnus derived it from ⟨con⟩ and ⟨for, fārī⟩ “to speak”.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLL finds it from Cicero on, as in his speeches against Verres, of Apronius' not only admitting but openly recounting his dealings with Verres.^[4][2][5]

Semantic evolution

It is an acknowledgement of something to one's disadvantage, an admission, and an opinion everyone admits, as Velleius' Catulus, by universal admission the leader of the senate.^[2][3] It is an admission of guilt, as Cicero's man who seeks a remedy for his own confession, and a tacit admission or token, as Livy's acknowledgement that Rome was the head of affairs.^[2]

In Christian Latin it is a confession or profession of faith, the witness of the martyrs, and the confession of sins and the sacrament of penance.^[1][8][9] In the Middle Ages it is also the martyr's tomb under the altar, as cōnfessiō sānctī Petrī, Saint Peter's tomb in Rome, and the right to hear confessions and receive the offerings made then.^[8] British sources use it of an admission of guilt or debt.^[10] English confession, in the late 14th century, came from it through Old French, first of confessing sins to a priest.^[11]

Timeline

• 81–43 BC – Cicero of an admission.^[2][5]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy of a tacit admission.^[2][5]
• 390–406 AD – The Vulgate.^[5]
• late 14th century – Borrowed into English as confession, through Old French.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. An acknowledgement, admission, confession.^[2][3][1][9]
2. An admission of guilt.^[2][9]
3. A tacit admission; a token, proof.^[2]
4. (Ecclesiastical Latin) A profession of faith; the witness of a martyr.^[1][8][9]
5. (Ecclesiastical Latin) Confession of sins; the sacrament of penance.^{[1][8][9][10]}
6. (Medieval Latin) A martyr's tomb under an altar.^[8]

Related words

• cōnfessor
• cōnfiteor
• fateor
• prōfessiō
• English confession

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
7. ^ Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
8. ^ a b c d e Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
9. ^ a b c d e Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
10. ^ a b 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
11. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com