Etymologically
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corpus

Etymology and origin of the Latin word corpus

History

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈkɔr.pʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈkɔr.pus][1]

Forms

corpus n (genitive corporis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *korp-os-, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥p-os- (“body”), a neuter s-stem.[2][1] The Italic, Celtic and Germanic forms point to a velar and to an ablaut between *-r̥- and *-re-.[2]

Cognate with Middle Irish crí (“body”), Sanskrit कृप् (kṛp-, “appearance, form”), Avestan kəhrp- (“form, body”), Old English hrif (“belly, womb”) and Old High German href (“body, womb”).[2][3][4] Isidore of Seville derived it from corruptiō “decay”, because the body perishes.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Naevius onwards,[2] who speaks of the guards of a king's body.[3] Ennius has it for a body torn apart with the sword.[3]

Semantic evolution

The word meant the body of a person or animal, as the seat of health and strength, as used in sex, as the centre of physical needs, and as distinct from the soul.[3][5] It meant a corpse, a person's outward appearance or complexion, flesh, and the trunk of a body or a tree.[3] Standing for the whole person, it gave phrases such as corporis custos “bodyguard”.[3]

From the physical body it extended to any structure: the frame of a ship, the body politic (corpus rei publicae), an organized body of people, a guild, and a social class.[3][6] Philosophers and Lucretius used it for matter and for atoms, and later writers for a compilation of writings or a code of law.[3][7] In medieval Latin it also meant the nave of a church and the bulk of a fortune.[7] Köbler also records the sense “host” of the Eucharist, and Corpus Christi became the name of the feast of the Blessed Sacrament.[8][9]

Timeline

  • c. 235–200 BC – Naevius uses it of a king's person.[2][3][8]
  • 204–169 BC – Ennius uses it for a body cut apart.[3][8]
  • 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses it for material bodies and atoms.[5][8]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero speaks of the body politic and of the body as the soul's container.[3][8]
  • 1st century BC – Vitruvius speaks of bringing a whole discipline into one corpus.[3]
  • Middle Ages – It means the nave of a church and a law code.[7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The body of a person or animal; the constitution, strength.[3][5]
  2. The body as distinct from the soul.[3]
  3. A dead body, corpse.[3][7]
  4. One's outward appearance, physique, complexion.[3]
  5. Flesh; the pulp of a fruit; solid substance.[3]
  6. A framework, structure; the body politic.[3]
  7. The trunk of a body; the main part of a plant; the shaft of a column.[3]
  8. A person, individual.[3][7]
  9. A material object; matter; a particle, atom.[3]
  10. Size, bulk.[3]
  11. An organized body of people; a corps of troops; a guild; a class.[3]
  12. A comprehensive collection of writings, a corpus; the total of an estate.[3][7]
  13. (Medieval Latin) The nave of a church.[7]

Word family

  • bicorpor
  • corporālis
  • corporeus
  • corporō
  • corporosus
  • corpulentus
  • corpusculum
  • corporascō
  • corporicīda
  • corporālitās
  • corporāliter
  • corporātiō
  • corporātīvus
  • corporātūra
  • corporātus
  • corpulentia
  • English corpse
  • English corset
  • English corporal
  • English corps

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University 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 Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  8. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  9. ^ Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com

Related etymologies

  • hospes · also from Proto-Italic
  • verbum · also from Proto-Italic
  • reus · also from Proto-Italic
  • ignis · also from Proto-Italic
  • mors · also from Proto-Italic
  • sal · also from Proto-Italic
  • rex · also from Proto-Italic
  • nomen · also from Proto-Italic
Cite this entry

“Corpus.” Etymologically, 10 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/corpus. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on .