Etymologically
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observantia

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ɔp.sɛrˈwan.ti.a][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ob.serˈvan.t͡si.a][1]

Forms

observantia f (genitive observantiae); first declension[1] Manuscripts also spell it observancia, and an edict of Diocletian has ubservantia.[2]

Etymology

It is from Latin observāns (“observing”) + -ia, the present participle of observō (“to watch, heed, respect”),[3][4][2] which is a compound of ob- and servō (“to keep, watch”).[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler records it first in Cicero,[4] who defines it as the virtue by which we respect and honour those who surpass us in age, wisdom, rank or other distinction.[3][5]

Semantic evolution

In Cicero it is the respectful regard shown to elders and superiors and the attentions by which friends are kept;[3][5] Livy has it towards a king, and Quintilian of freedmen towards their patrons.[5] Velleius uses it of watching or observing the seasons.[3][5] Valerius Maximus and the jurists use it of keeping laws, customs and rules,[3][5] and in Late Latin it came to mean religious observance and worship, as in the Theodosian Code and the Vulgate.[5] Medieval Latin used it of obeying the law, of a regulation or law itself, and of keeping divine law, religious duties and rites;[6] in Ecclesiastical Latin it also meant abstinence and practice.[7]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero defines it as respect for superiors.[3][5][4]
  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of respect towards a king.[5][4]
  • c. 20 BC–30 AD – Velleius uses it of observation.[3][5][4]
  • Late Latin – The Theodosian Code and the Vulgate use it of religious observance.[5]
  • Medieval Latin – It is used of a regulation or law.[6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Observation, attention, watching.[3][5]
  2. Respectful regard, deference, reverence.[3][5]
  3. Observance of laws, customs or rules.[3][5]
  4. (Late Latin) Religious observance, worship.[5][6]
  5. (Medieval Latin) A regulation, law.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson