molarius

Forms

molārius (feminine molāria, neuter molārium); first/second-declension adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin mola + -ārius, from mola (“millstone, mill”).^[2][1][3] De Vaan traces mola to Proto-Indo-European *molh₂-h₂- (“mill(stone)”), from the root *melh₂- (“to crush, grind”),^[3] which also gave the verb molō “to grind”.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cato has it first, in the phrase asinus molarius, the donkey that turns a mill, listed among the equipment of an olive yard and a vineyard.^[4][5][3][6]

Semantic evolution

In Classical Latin it remained an adjective meaning “of a mill, for grinding”: Varro repeats Cato's mill donkey,^[5][4] and Vitruvius uses it of a mill.^[7]

In medieval Latin it became a noun for a miller,^[8][9][6] which also served as a surname (Miller, Meunier) in British records.^[9] Du Cange records a molarius who quarries and cuts millstones, in a charter of 1299,^[10] and in Hungary lapis molarius is a millstone.^[11] Wiktionary lists Romanian morar (“miller”) and Aromanian murar as possible descendants.^[1]

Timeline

• 234–149 BC – Cato writes of the asinus molarius, the mill donkey.^[4][6]
• 116–27 BC – Varro uses the same phrase.^[5][4]
• c. 778 – Hugeburc's life of Saint Wynnebald uses it as a noun for a miller.^[9][12][6]
• 1061 – A Hungarian charter lists a molarius with his mill among a property's servants.^[11]
• 1299 – A charter in Du Cange uses it of a millstone quarrier.^[10]
• 1509 – The accounts of Hermannstadt record payment for nine millstones (lapides molarii).^[11]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Of or belonging to a mill; used for grinding.^[2][5]
2. asinus molarius – a donkey that turns a mill.^[5][13]
3. (Medieval Latin) lapis molarius – a millstone.^[11]

Noun

1. (Medieval Latin) A miller.^[8][9][12]
2. (Medieval Latin) A quarrier and cutter of millstones.^[10]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c d Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
5. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
7. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
8. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
9. ^ 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
10. ^ a b c du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
11. ^ a b c d Bartal, Antal, et al. (1987–), Lexicon Latinitatis Medii Aevi Hungariae, Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; online ed. ELTE
12. ^ a b Novum Glossarium Mediae Latinitatis ab anno DCCC usque ad annum MCC (1957–), Copenhagen / Geneva / Paris: Union Académique Internationale; IRHT
13. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn