Etymologically
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hirrio

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈhɪr.ri.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈir.ri.o][1]

Forms

hirriō (present infinitive hirrīre); fourth conjugation, no passive, no perfect or supine stems[1] Also spelled ⟨irriō⟩.[1][2][3] The grammarians Charisius and Diomedes give a perfect ⟨hirrīvī⟩ or ⟨hirriī⟩;[4] Georges notes that no text has it.[5]

Etymology

It is imitative, a word for a sound.[6][1][4] The TLL compares other imitative words such as German girren.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Festus, in the epitome of Paulus the Deacon, defines it as the sound of a rabid dog, a snarl.[4][2][5]

Semantic evolution

The word is rare and is used of dogs that growl without barking: Sidonius Apollinaris says it is innate in dogs that, even when they do not bark, they still snarl.[4][2][5] The grammarian Nonius explained the verb inrītāre “to provoke” as taken from dogs, which snarl when they are provoked.[4] A Greek–Latin glossary renders it with Ancient Greek ὑλακτῶ (hulaktô, “I bark”).[4][7]

Later it was used of people too: the monastic rule of Vigilius tells a superior not to rage or snarl in anger at those beneath him.[4] Glossaries and Aldhelm use it of the cry of hyenas.[4][8]

Timeline

  • 2nd half of the 2nd century AD – Festus defines it as the sound of a rabid dog.[4][9]
  • 2nd half of the 4th century AD – Diomedes gives its perfect forms.[4][5][9]
  • end of the 4th or beginning of the 5th century AD – Nonius derives inrītāre from snarling dogs.[4][9]
  • c. 431–486 AD – Sidonius Apollinaris says dogs snarl even when they do not bark.[4][2][9]
  • 639–709 AD – Aldhelm uses it of hyenas.[8][9]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (intransitive, of dogs) To snarl, growl.[6][2][5][10]
  2. (of hyenas) To give a whining cry.[4][8]
  3. (Late Latin, of people) To snarl in anger.[4]

Word family

  • hirrītus

Usage notes

It is one of the verbs for animal sounds: the TLL places it among the sounds of dogs that threaten rather than bark.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  5. ^ a b c d e Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Goetz, Georg (1888–1923), Corpus glossariorum Latinorum, Leipzig: Teubner; vols. VI–VII Thesaurus glossarum emendatarum, digital ed. CGLO, Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  8. ^ a b c Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  9. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  10. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier