Etymologically
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portarius

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [pɔrˈtaː.ri.ʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [porˈtaː.ri.us][1]

Forms

portārius m (genitive portāriī or portārī); second declension[1] Medieval Latin also has porterius.[2][3]

Etymology

It is a Late Latin formation,[3][1] from Latin porta + -ārius.[1][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the Vulgate, of the gatekeepers of a city who went and brought news,[4][6][7] and of the sons of Idithun appointed as gatekeepers.[4][8]

Semantic evolution

Cassiodorus' Latin Josephus uses it of Levites set to guard the temple,[4] and the Rule of Benedict of the monastery porter, who is to have a cell beside the gate.[4] In the Middle Ages it named a monk in charge of receiving guests,[2][9] a royal officer, the keeper of a city or castle gate, the porter of heaven, and it became the surname Porter.[3] It survives in Old French portier, Spanish portero and Portuguese porteiro,[4] and through Anglo-French it gave the English word porter “doorkeeper”.[10] In New Latin it has been used for a goalkeeper in football.[1]

Timeline

  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it of the gatekeepers of a city and of the temple.[4][7]
  • c. 485–c. 580 AD – Cassiodorus' Josephus uses it of Levites guarding the temple.[4][7]
  • 529 AD – The Rule of Benedict uses it of the monastery porter.[4][7]
  • mid-13th century – English porter “doorkeeper” is first recorded.[10]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A doorkeeper, gatekeeper, porter.[6][5][11]
  2. (Ecclesiastical Latin) The porter of a monastery; a monk in charge of receiving guests.[2][9]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A royal officer; the keeper of the gate of a city or castle.[3]
  4. (New Latin) A goalkeeper.[1]

Usage notes

In Medieval Latin it was also used as an adjective, “next to the gate”.[9][7]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  3. ^ a b c d 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
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  5. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  8. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b c du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
  10. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  11. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson