Etymologically
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diurnalis

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [di.ʊrˈnaː.lɪs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [di.urˈnaː.lis][1]

Forms

diurnālis (neuter diurnāle); third-declension two-termination adjective[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin diurnus (“of the day, daily”), with the adjective suffix -ālis.[2][1][3] Wiktionary takes it to have been coined to translate Ancient Greek ἡμερούσιος (hēmeroúsios, “daily”), the word it glosses in the Latin–Greek glossaries.[1][2][4] Through Old French jornel it is the source of English journal,[5] and directly of English diurnal.[5] Lewis and Short name Italian giornale and French journal as its descendants.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in the Latin–Greek glossaries, glossing Greek ἡμερούσιος “daily”.[2][4][3] Its first dated use, as a measure of land, is in a charter of 704 for Echternach.[6][7]

Semantic evolution

In Medieval Latin it kept the sense “of the day, daily” in monastic rules, which set the day office (officium diurnāle) against the night office and the day shoes (calciāmenta diurnālia) against the night shoes.[8][7] As a noun it named a measure of land, as much as could be ploughed in one day (French journel),[9][7][10] the shoes or clothes worn by day,[9][10] and a service book with the day hours, the “journal” or diurnal.[8][10] In Britain the phrase diurnāle opus is a day's work.[10]

Timeline

  • 704 AD – A charter for Echternach grants land counted in diurnālēs.[6][7]
  • 1293 – A British monastic text has monks put on their day shoes.[10]
  • mid-14th century – Its descendant enters English, through French, as journal, “book of church services”.[5]
  • late 14th century – Borrowed into English as diurnal, “daily”.[5]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of the day, daily, diurnal.[4][3][8]
  2. (Medieval Latin) Done, worn or sung by day.[8][10]

Noun

  1. (Medieval Latin) A measure of land, the area ploughed in one day.[9][7][10]
  2. (Medieval Latin, plural) Day shoes, shoes worn by day.[9][7]
  3. (Medieval Latin, neuter) A service book of the day hours, a diurnal.[8][10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  4. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ a b c d e f du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
  8. ^ a b c d e Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  9. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h 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