Etymologically
Log in

delegatio

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 23 October 2026 at 12:12. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [deː.ɫeːˈɡaː.ti.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [de.leˈɡat.t͡si.o][1]

Forms

dēlēgātiō f (genitive dēlēgātiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin dēlēgō (“to assign, delegate”) + -tiō, formed on the stem of the supine ⟨dēlēgātum⟩.[2][3][4][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first author is Cicero,[5][4] who in a letter to Atticus speaks of a payment to be made by assignment from a contractor.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

It is a term of Roman law: the transfer to a third party of a creditor's claim or a debtor's liability, so that one person is put in another's place.[2][3] Seneca uses it of a payment completed by such an assignment, and figuratively in a letter, where he says that some work does not allow a substitute and must be done in person.[3]

In Medieval Latin it was the commission of a task or of authority, especially to judges delegated by the pope or the emperor, and a written mandate;[6][7] in charters it is also a donation and the deed that records it.[8] Ecclesiastical Latin uses it for the granting of power to act for one in an office.[9] English delegation (1610s) may come from it directly or through French.[10]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of a payment by assignment.[3][4][5]
  • 4 BC–65 AD – Seneca uses it of payment by assignment and figuratively of a substitute.[3][5]
  • 1610s – English delegation is recorded.[10]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (law) The assignment of a debt or a claim to a third party.[2][3]
  2. The substitution of one person for another;[3][1] (figurative) a proxy.[3][1]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A commission or mandate, especially to delegate judges.[6][7]
  4. (Ecclesiastical Latin) delegation of the power of an office.[9]
  5. (Medieval Latin) A donation; the charter that records it.[8]

Word family

  • praedelegatio

References

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