mulsum

Forms

mulsum n (genitive mulsī); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin mulsus (“mixed with honey”), the neuter of that adjective used as a noun with vīnum (“wine”) understood.^[2][3] De Vaan lists both the adjective and the noun under mel (“honey”), from Proto-Indo-European *mel-i(-t) (“honey”), cognate with Ancient Greek μέλι (méli, “honey”) and Old Irish mil (“honey”);^[4] Lewis & Short and Wiktionary instead take the adjective as the participle of mulceō (“to stroke, soothe”).^[3][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan and Köbler date it from Plautus,^[4][5] who has someone told to mix the honey-wine in the Persa.^[3]

Semantic evolution

It is a drink of wine mixed with honey, oenomel.^[2][3] Cicero mentions cold honey-wine in the De oratore,^[3] and Serenus Sammonicus uses mulsum acētī for honey vinegar.^[3] Quintilian cites the plural as a solecism.^[2] Stelten glosses it “sweet wine”.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus, of honey-wine.^[3][4][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero, of cold honey-wine.^[3][5]
• c. 35–95/96 AD – Quintilian calls the plural a solecism.^[2][5]

Meanings

Noun

1. Honey-wine, a drink of wine mixed with honey, mead.^[2][3][1][6]

Word family

• mulseus

Related words

• mel
• mulsus
• mulceō

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson