Etymologically
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laicus

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈɫaː.ɪ.kʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈlaː.i.kus][1]

Forms

lāicus (feminine lāica, neuter lāicum); first/second-declension adjective[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek λαϊκός (lāïkós, “of the people, common”),[2][1][3] a derivative of λαός (laós, “people, folk”).[4][3] The origin of the Greek noun is unknown;[5] Beekes considers it rather Pre-Greek.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is found from Tertullian on,[6] who uses it as a noun for a layman, someone outside the clergy.[2]

Semantic evolution

In Christian Latin the word stood against clericus: a layman, or lay, as opposed to the clergy.[2][6] The Vulgate uses it in the sense “common, unconsecrated” of bread.[2][7] Poets avoided it;[6] Venantius Fortunatus, the only one to use it, scans the first syllable short.[6]

Medieval Latin used it also for the vernacular language (lingua laica), for an unlearned person and for a lay brother or sister in a monastery.[8][9] It continues in Italian laico, Old French lai, Catalan llec and Spanish lego,[6] and English lay comes from it through Old French.[5]

Timeline

  • c. 160–220 AD – Tertullian uses it for a layman.[2][6][3]
  • c. 383–419/420 AD – Jerome contrasts it with clericus.[2][3]
  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate speaks of laicos panes, unconsecrated bread.[2][7][3]
  • 536–c. 610 AD – Venantius Fortunatus uses it in verse.[6][3]
  • early 14th century – English borrows lay from Old French.[5]
  • 1560s – English laic appears, from French.[5]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. (Ecclesiastical Latin) Of the people, lay, not of the clergy.[2][8][1]
  2. (Ecclesiastical Latin) Common, not consecrated.[2][7][8]
  3. (Medieval Latin) Of a language: vernacular.[8]

Noun

  1. (Ecclesiastical Latin) A layman, laywoman.[2][8]
  2. (Medieval Latin) An unlearned person.[8]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A lay brother or lay sister.[8][9]
  • English lay
  • English laic

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  4. ^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  7. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  9. ^ a b 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