delirus
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Pronunciation
Forms
dēlīrus (feminine dēlīra, neuter dēlīrum); first/second-declension adjective[1]
Etymology
It is a back-formation from dēlīrō “to be crazy”, literally “to go off the furrow”, from dē- and līra “furrow”.[2][1][3]
Earliest recorded meaning
Köbler's first source is Varro, whom he dates 116–27 BC.[4] Lucretius has dēlīra fātur “says crazy things”.[5]
Semantic evolution
It meant having a deranged mind, crazy, silly, doting, as Lucretius' raving mind, Cicero's doting old man and Horace's madman, and of things senseless, as in Cicero.[2][5][6] Lactantius uses the comparative dēlīrior.[6]
In Medieval Latin it meant deviating, and raving, doting.[7] It survives in Old French deloir.[1] English delirium came in the 1590s from the related noun dēlīrium.[3]
Timeline
- 116–27 BC – Varro uses it.[4]
- 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses it of a raving mind.[5][4]
- 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of a doting old man.[5][4]
- 1590s – English delirium is recorded.[3]
Meanings
Adjective
Word family
- dēlīritās
- dēlīrium
- perdēlīrus
Related words
References
- ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
- ^ 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