manuopera

Forms

manuopera f (genitive manuoperae); first declension; also neuter plural manuopera, genitive manuoperōrum^[1][2] Charters also write it manopera, maneopera, mannopera, manuumopera and manobra.^[1][3] Niermeyer heads the word under the neuter manuopus (genitive manuoperis).^[2]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin manus (“hand”) + opera (“work”), “work of the hands”.^[1][3] Etymonline instead derives it from the medieval verb manuoperō (“to work with the hands”), from manū operārī “to work by hand”.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in a Frankish capitulary of about 800, for the labour service a tenant owed his lord besides his other dues.^[1]

Semantic evolution

In Carolingian estate surveys and capitularies it named the corvée done by hand, as against the caropera, the service done with a cart and team.^[1][2][5] Du Cange notes that this service was at times commuted into a money payment that kept the same name.^[5] A second medieval sense was stolen goods found on a thief, the English legal “mainour”.^[2] In British records it is the product of manual labour, work in general.^[6]

Through Old French manovre “manual labour” it is the source of French manœuvre, and of Spanish maniobra and Italian manovra.^[4] English borrowed the French word as maneuver in the military sense in 1757.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 800 – A Frankish capitulary uses it for a tenant's manual labour service.^[1]
• 9th century – A cartulary lists caropera and manopera among the yearly dues of tenants.^[1]
• 864 – A royal capitulary speaks of coloni who owe cart service and manual service by ancient custom.^[1]
• 1354 – A British record uses it of works to be done at castles.^[6]
• 1464 – Letters cited by Du Cange show the service paid in money under the same name.^[5]
• 1757 – English borrows French manœuvre as maneuver, “planned movement of troops”.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (Medieval Latin) Labour service done by hand, without a team; manual corvée.^[2][1][5]
2. (Medieval Latin) Stolen goods, mainour.^[2]
3. (Medieval Latin) The product of manual labour, work.^[6]

Related words

• manus
• opus
• English maneuver

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Novum Glossarium Mediae Latinitatis ab anno DCCC usque ad annum MCC (1957–), Copenhagen / Geneva / Paris: Union Académique Internationale; IRHT
2. ^ a b c d e f Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
3. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
6. ^ a b c 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