Etymologically
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lexicon

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈɫɛk.sɪ.kɔn][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈlɛk.si.kon][1]

Forms

lexicon n (genitive lexicī); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is a learned borrowed from Byzantine Greek λεξικόν (lexikón, “lexicon”),[1] short for Ancient Greek λεξικὸν βιβλίον (lexikòn biblíon, “a book of words”),[1][2] from λεξικός (lexikós, “of words”), from λέξις (léxis, “a saying, speech, word”), from λέγω (légō, “to speak”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leǵ- (“to gather, collect”).[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Wiktionary dates it at least to Girolamo Aleandro's Greek–Latin Lexicon of 1512, the title of a dictionary.[1]

Semantic evolution

In Neo-Latin it was a plain word for a dictionary: a Polish chapter record of 1540 speaks of a lexicon of both laws “or dictionary” (sive dictionarium),[3] and Forsett wished to be buried with the lexicon of Nizolius.[4] English took it around 1600, from French or directly from New Latin.[2]

Timeline

  • 1512 – Girolamo Aleandro's Lexicon graeco-latinum.[1]
  • 1540 – A Polish chapter record pairs lexicon with dictionarium.[3]
  • c. 1600 – Borrowed into English as lexicon.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (New Latin) A dictionary, a lexicon; a word list.[1][4][3]

Usage notes

A Polish record of 1540 glosses it with the Medieval Latin word dictionarium.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl
  4. ^ a b Ramminger, Johann, Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, www.neulatein.de