innovator

Forms

innovātor m (genitive innovātōris); third declension^[1][2]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin innovō (“to renew”) + -tor.^[3][1][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Liber genealogus calls Ezra the innovator of the law, its renewer;^[3][2] the glossaries render it with Ancient Greek καινιστής (kainistḗs).^[1][4]

Semantic evolution

Paulinus of Nola also has it.^[5] In Medieval Latin it meant a restorer: Berno of Reichenau calls God made man the renewer of nature, and Caesarius of Heisterbach names Abbot Robert as the renewer of the Cistercian order.^[6]

In 16th-century Poland it was used of people who bring in religious novelties, beside heretics,^[7] and Neo-Latin writers kept the sense “renewer”.^[8] Italian innovatore continues the Late Latin word.^[2]

Timeline

• 5th century AD – The Liber genealogus calls Ezra the renewer of the law.^[3][4]
• first half of the 11th century – Berno of Reichenau calls God made man the renewer of nature.^[6][4]
• 1559 – Polish chapter acts use it of those who show themselves open innovators and heretics.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. A renewer, restorer.^[1][3][6]
2. (Poland, 16th century) One who introduces religious novelties.^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c d Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
2. ^ a b c Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
3. ^ a b c d Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
4. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
6. ^ a b c Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
7. ^ a b c Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl
8. ^ Ramminger, Johann, Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, www.neulatein.de