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filiolus

Etymology and origin of the Latin word filiolus

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Plautus
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*dʰeh₁(y)-)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [fiːˈli.ɔ.ɫʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [fiˈliː.o.lus][1]

Forms

fīliolus m (genitive fīliolī, feminine fīliola); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is a diminutive of fīlius “son” with the suffix -olus.[2][1] De Vaan traces ⟨fīlius⟩ to Proto-Italic *fīlio- (“son”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰ(e)h₁i-l- (“suckling, child”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD and Gaffiot cite Plautus' Captivi.[2][4] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It was a little son, a dear son, as in Plautus and Cicero's fīliolō mē auctum scītō “know that I have been blessed with a little son”.[2][6][4]

In Medieval Latin it was a godson.[7] In Ecclesiastical Latin it was a little child, and British Medieval Latin used it figuratively of spiritual sons, as in the life of Cuthbert.[8][9] It survives in Italian figliolo, Spanish hijuelo and French filleul “godson”.[1]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of his son.[6][5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A little son, dear son.[2]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A godson; a spiritual son.[7][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  5. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  9. ^ 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
Cite this entry

“Filiolus.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/filiolus. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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