exploratio
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Pronunciation
Forms
explōrātiō f (genitive explōrātiōnis); third declension[1]
Etymology
It is from explōrō “to search out, investigate” with the suffix -tiō.[2][1]
Earliest recorded meaning
Lewis & Short and Gaffiot cite Columella, of examining a shoot.[3][4] Köbler's first source is Suetonius.[5]
Semantic evolution
It meant searching out, investigation, examination, and in the army a reconnaissance unit.[2] Tacitus has explōrātiō occulta “secret spying”.[4] Lewis & Short note it is post-Augustan.[3]
British Medieval Latin used it for exploration, reconnoitring, scouting, spying, with reference to Numbers 14.[6] It was borrowed into French and English exploration.[1][7]
Timeline
- 1st century AD – Columella uses it.[3][5]
- 98–115 AD – Tacitus uses it of spying.[4][5]
- c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius uses it.[5]
Meanings
Noun
- Investigation, examination, exploration.[2]
- (military) Reconnaissance; a scouting unit.[2][4]
Related words
- explōrō
- explōrātor
- English exploration
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 Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
- ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ 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
- ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com