Etymologically
Log in

proba

History Permalink

Etymology and origin of the Latin word proba

Confidence
Established
Formation
Back-formation
First attested
c. 360 AD, Pelagonius
Ultimate origin
Latin probō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin probus
Latin probo
French preuve
French prouver
Italian provare
Dutch proberen
Latin proba
From the same root
Latin probe ← probus
Latin probitas ← probus
Latin probatio ← probo
Latin probator ← probo
French éprouver ← prouver

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈprɔ.ba][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈprɔː.ba][1]

Forms

proba f (genitive probae); first declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin probō (“to test, approve, prove”), a back-formation from the verb.[2][1][3] The TLL compares formations of this kind in Leumann's grammar.[2] The word passed into Greek as a loanword.[2] Through Old French prueve and Anglo-Norman preove it is the source of English proof.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler gives Tertullian as the first source.[4] The TLL's earliest example is in the veterinary writer Pelagonius, who says that horses with too restless tails are usually rejected at the test (in probā).[2][4]

Semantic evolution

In Late Latin it meant a test or examination, especially of army horses:[2] the Theodosian Code limits to one solidus the fee that the stratōrēs might demand under the name of proba.[2][5] By metonymy it was also the thing put to the test, a sample: Ammianus Marcellinus says that samples of the soldiers' grain ration, which they call probae, were offered to the emperor Jovian.[2][5]

In Medieval Latin it meant proof or evidence, and in British records a sample of grain taken for testing.[6] Du Cange glosses it as a specimen, comparing French épreuve and Italian prova.[7]

Timeline

  • c. 160–220 AD – Köbler's first source, Tertullian.[4]
  • c. 360 AD – Pelagonius uses it of the test of army horses.[2][4]
  • c. 390 AD – Ammianus Marcellinus: samples of grain offered to Jovian.[2][4]
  • 438 AD – The Theodosian Code names a fee probae nōmine.[2][4]
  • 1198 – An English court record uses it for proof in a suit.[6]
  • c. 1200 – Borrowed into English, through French, as proof.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin) a test, trial, examination.[2][5][8]
  2. (Late Latin) a sample (of something tested).[2][9]
  3. (Medieval Latin) proof, evidence.[6][1]

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 j k l Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b c 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. ^ du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
  8. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  9. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
Cite this entry

“Proba.” Etymologically, 23 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/proba. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·