Etymologically
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devastatio

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [deː.waːsˈtaː.ti.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [de.vasˈtat.t͡si.o][1]

Forms

dēvāstātiō f (genitive dēvāstātiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin dēvāstō (“to lay waste”) + -tiō.[1][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first use is in Hilary of Poitiers' commentary on Psalm 13, which speaks of the devastatio plebis dei, “the laying waste of God's people”.[2][3] Köbler dates Hilary to about 315–367 AD.[4]

Semantic evolution

Georges and Gaffiot label it a word of Christian writers.[5][6] It occurs in the chronicle of Marcellinus, in the Opus imperfectum on Matthew and in Gregory of Tours' history, and Cassiodorus uses it for the person who lays waste.[2]

In Medieval Latin it was common in capitularies, charters and chronicles for the ravaging of a kingdom or land; in law it named the damaging use of property granted for a term, and more widely an affliction or calamity.[7] Hungarian charters use it of the destruction of the kingdom by the Tartars and also of maltreatment.[8] English devastation dates from the mid-15th century.[9]

Timeline

  • c. 315–367 AD – Hilary of Poitiers uses it of the laying waste of God's people.[2][3][4]
  • c. 485–c. 580 AD – Cassiodorus uses it for one who lays waste.[2][4]
  • 6th century AD – Marcellinus uses it in his chronicle.[2][4]
  • 538/539–594 AD – Gregory of Tours uses it in his history of the Franks.[2][4]
  • 1260 – An entry in the English Close Rolls speaks of setting out to lay waste parts of the March.[10]
  • 1359 – A Polish document tells of a harvest lost to the devastation of locusts.[11]
  • mid-15th century – English borrows it as devastation.[9]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A laying waste, devastation, ravaging.[5][6][2][7][10]
  2. (Late Latin) One who lays waste, a devastator.[2]
  3. (Medieval Latin, law) Waste, damaging use of property held for a term.[7]
  4. (Medieval Latin) Affliction, calamity; maltreatment.[7][8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ a b Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b c d Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  8. ^ a b Bartal, Antal, et al. (1987–), Lexicon Latinitatis Medii Aevi Hungariae, Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; online ed. ELTE
  9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  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. ^ Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl