directorius

Forms

dīrēctōrius (feminine dīrēctōria, neuter dīrēctōrium); first/second-declension adjective^[1][2]

Etymology

It is from Latin dīrigō (“to direct”),^[1][3][2] with the suffix -tōrius.^[1] De Vaan treats ⟨dīrigō⟩ as a compound of regō (“to direct, guide”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest use is in Rufinus' translation of Origen's commentary on the Song of Songs,^[3][2] where the feminine directoria is used as a noun for what seems to be a craftsman's tool for straight lines, like a ruler: if anything in us is crooked, “superducentes directoriam mandatorum dei”, laying on it the straightedge of God's commandments.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The Theodosian Code has litterae directoriae, letters that direct or send someone in a given direction.^[1] The neuter became the noun dīrēctōrium, a prescribed route.^[5][6] In Polish Medieval Latin, Długosz speaks of loca directoria, the places through which a route leads.^[7]

Timeline

• c. 345–411/412 AD – Rufinus uses the feminine as a noun for a straightedge.^[3][2]
• 438 AD – The Theodosian Code has litterae directoriae.^[1][2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. That directs or sends in a given direction: litterae directoriae.^[1]
2. (Medieval Latin) loca directoria: the places along a route.^[7]

Noun

1. (feminine, Late Latin) directoria: a craftsman's tool for straight lines, like a ruler.^[3]

Word family

• dīrēctōrium

Related words

• dīrigō
• dīrēctus

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
2. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
3. ^ a b c d e Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
4. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl