mulgeo

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈmʊɫ.ɡe.oː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈmul̠ʲ.d͡ʒe.o]^[1]

Forms

mulgeō (present infinitive mulgēre, perfect active mulsī, supine mulsum); second conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *molgeje-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *h₂mlǵ-éye- (“to milk”), an iterative present of Proto-Indo-European *h₂melǵ- (“to milk”).^[2][1] Cognate with Ancient Greek ἀμέλγω (amélgō, “to milk”), Old Irish mligid (“milks”), Lithuanian mélžti (“to milk”) and English milk.^[2][3][4] In view of the Irish word it most likely continues the zero grade of the root.^[2] The supine mulsum was formed after the perfect mulsī.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Cato, who speaks of the milk drawn on feast days.^[2][3] Köbler dates Cato 234–149 BC.^[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to milk an animal, as Virgil's sheep and Pliny the Elder's goats, and to draw milk.^[3][6] Hircōs mulgēre “to milk he-goats” was proverbial for attempting the impossible.^[7] From it came mulctra “milking-pail”, and prōmulgō “to make known”, as if “to milk forth”.^[2]

It survives in Italian mungere and Romanian mulge.^[1] English promulgate comes from prōmulgāre, recorded in the 1520s.^[8]

Timeline

• 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of milking.^[3][5]
• 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of sheep and of milking he-goats.^[6][7][5]
• 1520s – English promulgate is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To milk (an animal).^[3]
2. To draw (milk).^[3]

Word family

• ēmulgeō
• immulgeō
• mulctrum
• mulctus
• mulgare
• mulsum
• mulsūra
• caprimulgus
• equimulga

Related words

• prōmulgō
• English milk
• English promulgate

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
3. ^ a b c d e f Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
5. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com