melo

Forms

mēlō m (genitive mēlōnis); third declension^[1] The TLL records a nominative melon and notes that the first syllable is sometimes short.^[2]

Etymology

It is probably from Latin mēlopepō (“apple-shaped melon”), shortened,^[1][2] which comes from Ancient Greek μηλοπέπων (mēlopépōn).^[1] The TLL reports this explanation from Victor Hehn, and Svennung's view that the word was made directly from Ancient Greek μῆλον (mêlon, “apple”) on the model of pepō (“pumpkin, melon”).^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest dated author to use it is Arnobius (297–310 AD), for the melon.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Late Latin writers use it for the melon as a food: the Historia Augusta tells of ten melons from Ostia eaten on an empty stomach, and Palladius says melons are sown in March.^[2] Augustine mocks the belief that the dead are reborn as melons and cucumbers.^[2]

In British Medieval Latin it named the melon, including a kind called Palestinian, and also a representation of a melon.^[4] Italian melone comes from it,^[5] and English melon (late 14th century) is from Old French and directly from Medieval Latin.^[6]

Timeline

• 297–310 AD – Arnobius uses it.^[2][3]
• 354–430 AD – Augustine writes of the dead being reborn as melons.^[2][3]
• end of the 4th or beginning of the 5th century AD – Palladius says melons are sown in March.^[7][2][3]
• late 14th century – English borrows melon, partly from Medieval Latin.^[6]

Meanings

Noun

1. A melon, muskmelon.^[7][8][9][1]
2. (Medieval Latin) A representation of a melon.^[4]

Related words

• pepo
• English melon

Usage notes

The OLD has a separate entry for Mēlō, an old Latin name of the Nile,^[10][7] which Conte cites from Ennius.^[5] Paulus' epitome of Festus and Servius explain it, and Ausonius calls the papyrus Melonis alba filia, “the white daughter of the Nile”.^[7] Isidore also has melo as a form of mēles “badger”.^[9][8]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
3. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b 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
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 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
9. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
10. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press