Etymologically
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humilitas

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [hʊˈmɪ.lɪ.taːs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [uˈmiː.li.tas][1]

Forms

humilitās f (genitive humilitātis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin humilis (“low, humble”) + -tās.[2][3][1] De Vaan lists humilis among the derivatives of humus (“earth, ground”), which he traces to Proto-Italic *χomo- and Proto-Indo-European *dʰǵʰ-ōm (“earth”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan and Köbler date it from Accius,[4][5] who writes in a tragedy that no lowliness of rank ever weakens a good nature.[2]

Semantic evolution

Its first sense is physical lowness: lowness of stature, as Cicero's animals so low that they can easily reach their food on the ground, Caesar's low ships, and lowness of position, of the stars.[2][6] Most often it is lowness of rank, a humble condition or insignificance, and degradation or humiliation, as in Caesar.[2] Petronius uses it of the commonplace style of Lucilius, and Cicero of submissiveness, contrasting it unfavourably with courage and greatness of spirit.[2] In Church Latin it becomes the virtue of humility, meekness,[7][1][8] and Medieval Latin also uses it of a lowly, poor state of life and of oppression.[9] English humility (early 14th century) comes from it through Old French.[7]

Timeline

  • 170–c. 90 BC – Accius of lowly rank.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero of lowness of stature and of submissiveness.[2][5]
  • c. 50 BC – Caesar of low ships and of humiliation.[2][6][5]
  • early 14th century – English humility comes from it through Old French.[7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Lowness of stature or position.[2][6]
  2. Lowness of rank, humble condition, insignificance, lowliness.[2][9][1]
  3. Degradation, humiliation.[2][8][1]
  4. Commonplaceness of style.[2]
  5. Submissiveness;[2][8][9][1] (Ecclesiastical Latin) humility, meekness, modesty.[2][8][9][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ a b c d Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  9. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill