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manipulus

Etymology and origin of the Latin word manipulus

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
Plautus
Ultimate origin
Latin (manus,pleō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [maˈnɪ.pʊ.ɫʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [maˈniː.pu.lus][1]

Forms

manipulus m (genitive manipulī); second declension[1] Also maniplus (in the poets) and manuplus.[2][3]

Etymology

It is from manus “hand” and the root of ⟨*pleō⟩ “to fill”, a handful.[2][1][4] De Vaan traces ⟨manus⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *mon-u- (“hand”).[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation for the military unit is from Plautus.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[6]

Semantic evolution

It was a handful, as in Cato; a bundle, sheaf, truss of hay or corn, as in Varro; and a unit of infantry of two centuries, a third of a cohort, a maniple, company, as in Plautus.[2] Isidore says the soldiers were named maniples because they first fought by hand, or because before there were standards they used bundles of straw or grass as their signs.[7]

In the Church it was a towel for the priest's face, then the maniple worn on the left arm at Mass; also a towel, apron, and a bowl for bloodletting.[8] British Medieval Latin used it for a handful, a small measure.[9] French manipule “handful”, a pharmacists' measure, is the source of English manipulation (by 1730).[4]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of a company of soldiers.[2][6]
  • 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of a handful.[2][6]
  • 116–27 BC – Varro uses it of a sheaf.[2][6]
  • 1730 – English manipulation is recorded.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A handful; a bundle, sheaf.[2]
  2. (military) A maniple, company.[2]
  3. (Ecclesiastical Latin) The maniple worn at Mass; a towel.[8][10]

Word family

  • commanipulus
  • manipellus
  • manipulāris
  • manipulārius
  • manipulātim

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ Isidore of Seville, Etymologiarum sive Originum libri XX, ed. W. M. Lindsay (Oxford, 1911).
  8. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  9. ^ 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
  10. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
Cite this entry

“Manipulus.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/manipulus. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·