praeambulus

Forms

praeambulus (feminine praeambula, neuter praeambulum); first/second-declension adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin praeambulō (“to walk before”), formed like funambulus with the second part made to look like a word in -ulus.^[2][1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in Martianus Capella, in the 5th century AD, where Philologia is escorted by the Muses with her mother walking before (matre praeambula).^[2][4][3]

Semantic evolution

Medieval Latin used it of someone walking in front and, more often, of something earlier, previous or preliminary; as a noun it meant a forerunner or a guide.^[5][6] British writers used it of leaders and of things that go before, such as a word that leads the way to spiritual acts.^[6] In Neo-Latin it also meant introductory.^[7]

The neuter praeambulum, used as a noun for a preliminary text, is the source of English preamble,^[8] and Italian preambolo goes back to the Late Latin adjective.^[9]

Timeline

• 5th century AD – Martianus Capella uses it of a mother walking in front.^[2][3]
• c. 1265 – The Annals of Durham speak of discretion going before judgement.^[6]
• late 14th century – English borrows preamble, partly from Medieval Latin praeambulum.^[8]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Walking or going in front.^[4][10][2]
2. (Medieval Latin) Earlier, previous, preliminary.^[5][6]
3. (New Latin) Introductory.^[7]

Noun

1. (Medieval Latin) A forerunner.^[5][1]
2. (Medieval Latin) A guide.^[5]

Related words

• English preamble

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
3. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
6. ^ 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
7. ^ a b Ramminger, Johann, Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, www.neulatein.de
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
10. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn