obtestatio

Forms

obtestātiō f (genitive obtestātiōnis); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin obtestor (“to call to witness, implore”) + -tiō.^[2][3][1][4] The verb is a compound of ob- and testor, which can be derived directly from testis (“witness”);^[5] de Vaan explains the noun as “the third standing by”, from Proto-Italic *tri-sto/i-.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its earliest uses are in Cicero, who in the speech for Balbus speaks of laws made binding by a solemn invocation and consecration.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

Festus defines it as calling a god to witness for good, as opposed to dētestātiō, for ill.^[7][3] It meant a solemn oath or invocation, as in Livy's “they drew up an oath”,^[2][6] and then an earnest entreaty or appeal: Cicero speaks of a husband's appeal in the Pro Cluentio, and Nepos, Livy and Tacitus use it of supplications, Tacitus of the senate stooping to the most abject entreaties.^[2][8][6]

In British medieval sources it is an invocation of the divine name, a solemn charge with a warning or threat, and a warning.^[9]

Timeline

• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of a solemn invocation and of an earnest appeal.^[2][10]
• c. 100–24 BC – Nepos uses it of entreaty.^[8][10]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of an oath and of supplications.^[6][8][10]
• 98–115 AD – Tacitus speaks of abject entreaties.^[6][10]

Meanings

Noun

1. A calling to witness, solemn invocation; an oath.^[2][7][6]
2. An earnest entreaty, solemn appeal, adjuration.^[2][1]
3. (Medieval Latin) A solemn charge carrying a warning or threat; a warning.^[9]

Usage notes

Festus contrasts it with dētestātiō, in which a god is called to witness for harm.^[7][3]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
4. ^ Bianchi, Rossella; Lelli, Olga (2014), VOLI: Vocabolario di latino, Florence: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
6. ^ a b c d e f Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
7. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
9. ^ 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
10. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de