Etymologically
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obvenio

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ɔbˈwɛ.ni.oː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [obˈvɛː.ni.o][1]

Forms

obveniō (present infinitive obvenīre, perfect active obvēnī, supine obventum); fourth conjugation, third person-only in the passive[1]

Etymology

It is from ob- “towards” and veniō “to come”.[2][1] De Vaan traces ⟨veniō⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *gʷm̥-yé- (“to come”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citations are from Plautus, of falling to someone's lot and of happening.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to fall to someone's lot, be assigned, as a province to a magistrate, and to happen, occur, present itself, as in Plautus.[2][5] In Livy it meant to come face to face, meet.[2][6]

It survives in French obvenir and Catalan obvenir.[1]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it.[2][4]
  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of meeting.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To come to meet.[2]
  2. To fall to one's lot.[2]
  3. To happen, occur.[2]

Word family

  • obvenientia
  • obventīcius
  • obventiō
  • obventus

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.