Etymologically
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qualificatio

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Forms

quālificātiō f (genitive quālificātiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin quālificō (“to qualify”) + -tiō.[2][1] The medieval verb was formed from quālis (“of what kind”) with -ficus and a verb ending; the DMLBS compares Classical magnificō.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first British record, in a Hereford register of 1389, has it for the nature or make-up of a person's complexion, by which medicine should be given.[2]

Semantic evolution

In Polish sources it meant the determination of quality, or quality itself, as in a letter of 1461, and in 1516 litterae qualificationum were letters attesting someone's qualifications, here those of doctors of law.[3] A Scottish council of 1552 used it for a modification or mitigation.[2] Ecclesiastical Latin has it for qualification.[4]

English qualification, first in the sense of a restriction, comes in the 1540s from French and directly from Medieval Latin.[5] It passed also into Middle French, Catalan and Dutch.[1]

Timeline

  • 1389 – A Hereford register uses it for the make-up of a complexion.[2]
  • 1461 – A Polish letter uses it for the determination of quality.[3]
  • 1516 – Polish litterae qualificationum attest the qualifications of doctors of law.[3]
  • 1540s – English borrows it as qualification.[5]
  • 1552 – A Scottish council uses it for a modification.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Medieval Latin) Nature, condition, make-up; quality.[2][3]
  2. (Medieval Latin) Determination of quality.[3]
  3. (Medieval Latin) Modification, mitigation.[2]
  4. (Medieval Latin) Qualification (for an office or degree).[4][3][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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
  3. ^ a b c d e f Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl
  4. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  5. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com