Etymologically
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crudus

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈkruː.dʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈkruː.dus][1]

Forms

crūdus (feminine crūda, neuter crūdum, comparative crūdior, superlative crūdissimus); first/second-declension adjective[1]

Etymology

It is from the root Proto-Indo-European *krewh₂- (“raw flesh, blood”), the root of cruor “blood”, but its formation is disputed.[1][2][3] De Vaan considers Proto-Italic *krowoþo-, from *kreuh₂-odʰ-o-, and mentions the alternative *kruh₂-ro- with an unusual change of ⟨r⟩ to ⟨d⟩, as in Avestan xrūra (“bloody”).[4] Cognate with Middle Irish crúaid (“hard, harsh”) and Old English hrēaw (English raw).[4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan and Köbler date it from Plautus,[4][5] who has a cook complaining of people who serve raw vegetables.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant raw or uncooked, of food and of entrails offered without fire, and then untreated or crude, as of unbaked bricks.[2][6] Of food in the stomach it meant undigested, of wounds raw or bleeding, and of fruit unripe.[2] Virgil's crūda senectūs was a vigorous old age.[2] Of people it meant fierce or savage, and of pain or punishment bitter.[2]

Its derivative crūdēlis “cruel” gave English cruel, and crūditās meant indigestion.[1][7] English crude is from crūdus itself, first of coarse bread and untanned hide.[7] It survives in Italian crudo and French cru.[1]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus speaks of raw vegetables.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero says unripe apples can hardly be pulled from the tree.[2][5]
  • 70–19 BC – Virgil speaks of a green old age.[2][5]
  • late 14th century – English crude is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. raw, uncooked.[2]
  2. Untreated, rough, crude.[2]
  3. Undigested.[2]
  4. (of wounds) Raw, bleeding.[2]
  5. Unripe, green.[2]
  6. (of old age) Vigorous, hardy.[2]
  7. Fierce, savage, (of pain) bitter.[2]

Word family

  • crūdārius
  • crūdēlis
  • crūdēscō
  • crūditās
  • percrūdus
  • sēmicrūdus
  • subcrūdus
  • crūdēlē
  • crūdēlitas
  • crūdēliter
  • crūditātiō
  • crūditō
  • cruentus
  • cruor
  • English crude
  • English cruel

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com