laudatio

Forms

laudātiō f (genitive laudātiōnis); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from laudō (“to praise”) with the suffix -tiō.^[2][3][1] The verb comes from laus (“praise”), which de Vaan derives from Proto-Italic *lauVd-; the only proposed link is with a Germanic word for “song”, as Gothic 𐌰𐍅𐌹𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌸 (awiliuþ, “song of praise”) and Old English lēoþ (“song”), which is uncertain.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler gives Cicero as its first author,^[5] who says that to credit someone's good fortune to the judgement of the gods is a matter of praise.^[2]

Semantic evolution

It is the act of praising or commendation, and a speech or writing in praise, a eulogy or panegyric, as Cicero's Greeks who wrote eulogies to please readers or honour someone.^[2][6] In particular it is the funeral eulogy, as Cicero's “some eulogies of the dead”, and a testimonial to an accused man's character in court, as the Mamertines' testimonial for Verres.^[2][6]

Church Latin glosses it “praise, commendation, testimony”.^[7] In medieval Latin it is approval, the consent of kinsmen or of a lord to the sale of land, the fee paid for that consent, a cession, a grant, a confirmation and a judgement.^[8] English laudation comes from it, from the early 15th century.^[9]

Timeline

• 81–43 BC – Cicero of praise, eulogies and testimonials.^[2][5]
• 1108 – recorded in a charter.^[5]
• early 15th century – English laudation.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. Praise, commendation.^[2][6][1][7]
2. A eulogy, panegyric; a funeral eulogy.^[2][6][1]
3. A character testimonial (in court).^[2]
4. (Medieval Latin) Consent of kin or lord to the sale of land; the fee for it; a grant, confirmation.^[8]

Related words

• laudō
• laus
• laudātor
• encōmium
• English laudation

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. ^ 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
8. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com