Etymologically
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iugis

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈjuː.ɡɪs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈjuː.d͡ʒis][1]

Forms

iūgis (neuter iūge, adverb iūgiter); third-declension two-termination adjective[1]

Etymology

Its origin is disputed.[1] It was traditionally derived from iugum “yoke” and iungō “to join”, “joined together”, as the OLD still does.[2][3][4] Weiss rejected this, since the meaning is “continual” from the start and the long /ū/ is hard to explain from iugum.[2] He proposed Proto-Indo-European *h₂iu-gʷih₃- (“having eternal life”), a compound of the words for “long life” and “life”, cognate with Avestan yauuaējī- (“living forever”), Ancient Greek ὑγιής (hugiḗs, “healthy”) and Old English ēce (“eternal”).[2][1] De Vaan accepts this.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Plautus, who speaks of an unfailing treasure.[2][4] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant continuing without a break, constant, perpetual, and was used above all of water, “ever-flowing, running”, as Cicero's ever-flowing wells and Horace's spring of living water.[3][6] The grammarian Terentianus Maurus uses it of an unbroken series of feet.[3] The augurs' iūge auspicium, when a yoked pair of oxen dunged at once, was taken from iugum.[4]

In Medieval Latin it was common of constant prayer, meditation and illness.[7] Iūgis was also a measure of land, from iugum.[8]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus speaks of an unfailing treasure.[4][5]
  • 86–34 BC – Sallust speaks of a town with one spring of running water.[3][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero speaks of ever-flowing wells.[3][5]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Continual, constant, perpetual.[3]
  2. (Of water) ever-flowing, running.[3]
  3. (Of a series) unbroken.[3]

Word family

  • iniugis
  • iugifluus
  • iugitas
  • iūge
  • iūgiter

References

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