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martellus

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word martellus

Confidence
Probable
Formation
Derivation
First attested
c. 560–636 Isidore of Seville, Etymologies More words from the 6th century
Ultimate origin
Latin marculus
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin martellus
French marteau
Spanish martillo

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [marˈtɛl.lʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [marˈtɛl.lus][1]

Forms

martellus m (genitive martellī); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is probably a diminutive from Latin martulus,[1][2] which is itself an alteration of marculus (“small hammer”).[1] Köbler refers it to marcus (“hammer”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Isidore of Seville defines it in the Etymologies as a middle-sized hammer.[2][4][5] A glossary adds that it was named as a diminutive.[6]

Semantic evolution

It is a Late Latin word for a hammer;[1][7] the glossaries render it with the Greek words for a hammer.[6] In Medieval Latin it was used of the hammers of masons and smiths and of a part of a mill.[8] It is the source of Italian martello, French marteau and Spanish martillo.[2][5]

Timeline

  • c. 560–636 AD – Isidore of Seville defines it.[2][3]
  • 1253 – An English account mentions grease for sharpening martella.[8]
  • 1295 – An English account records the mending of a smith's martellus.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin) A hammer, especially a middle-sized or small one.[1][2][7]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A mason's or smith's hammer; a hammer in a mill.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  4. ^ Isidore of Seville, Etymologiarum sive Originum libri XX, ed. W. M. Lindsay (Oxford, 1911).
  5. ^ a b Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  6. ^ a b Goetz, Georg (1888–1923), Corpus glossariorum Latinorum, Leipzig: Teubner; vols. VI–VII Thesaurus glossarum emendatarum, digital ed. CGLO, Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  7. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  8. ^ a b c d 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
Cite this entry

“Martellus.” Etymologically, 13 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/la/martellus. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·