iniussus

Forms

iniussus (feminine iniussa, neuter iniussum); first/second-declension adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from in- (“not”) and ⟨iussus⟩, the past participle of iubeō (“to order”).^[2][3] De Vaan traces ⟨iubeō⟩ to Proto-Italic *jouþ-eje/o- and the causative Proto-Indo-European *Hioudh-eie/o- (“to cause to move”); the Latin meaning developed from “to set in motion” to “to order”.^[4] Cognate with Sanskrit युध्यति (yúdhyati, “fights”) and Lithuanian judė́ti (“to move”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler's first source is Horace,^[3] who mocks singers who never sing when asked and, unbidden, never stop.^[5]

Semantic evolution

It means “unbidden, of one's own accord”, of persons and animals, and of things “not asked for”: Virgil says “I sing what is not unbidden”.^[2][5] Lucan uses it of a boy acting unbidden.^[5]

In medieval sources a placitum iniussum is a court held without summons.^[6]

Timeline

• 70–19 BC – Virgil, “not unbidden I sing”.^[2][3]
• 65–8 BC – Horace of singers who will not stop unbidden.^[5][3]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Unbidden, of one's own accord, spontaneous.^[2][5][1]
2. Of things, not asked for.^[2]
3. (Medieval Latin) placitum iniussum, a court held without summons.^[6]

Related words

• iubeō
• iniussū
• iussus

Usage notes

The ablative iniussū “without orders”, usually with a genitive (iniussū imperātōris), is much more common;^[2][3][5] Köbler finds it from Plautus on, and Lewis and Short call it frequent in Cicero and Livy.^[2][3][5]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
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 e f g Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill