renuntio

Forms

renūntiō (present infinitive renūntiāre, perfect active renūntiāvī, supine renūntiātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from re- (“back”) and nūntiō (“to announce”).^[2][3][1] The verb ⟨nūntiō⟩ comes from nūntius (“messenger”), which de Vaan reconstructs as ⟨*nountio-⟩; its further origin is unclear, with derivations from a root ⟨*neuH-⟩ “to cry” and one from novus (“new”) both proposed, the second hard to justify morphologically.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Plautus is its first author in the OLD, who has abi et renūntiā, “go and take back the message”, in the Bacchides.^[2][5]

Semantic evolution

It is first to bring back word or report, and to announce facts, as Terence's “what did he report?”.^[2][6] Set phrases are lēgātiōnem renūntiāre, to report on an embassy on returning home, and repudium renūntiāre, to announce that an engagement is broken off, as in Plautus' Aulularia.^[2] In elections it is to declare a candidate elected, as in Cicero's Verrines.^[2][6]

It also means to send word cancelling an invitation or engagement, as Plautus' guest who has promised to dine elsewhere, hence to call off an agreement or friendship and, with the dative, to give up or renounce something, as Seneca's man who renounces all other duties.^[2][6] Church Latin glosses it “renounce, give up” beside “relate, report, declare, appoint”.^[7] English renounce comes from it, partly through Old French.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus of taking back a message and of cancelling an invitation.^[2][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of declaring a candidate elected and of calling off an agreement.^[2][5]
• 4 BC–65 AD – Seneca of renouncing duties.^[2][5]
• late 14th century – English renounce, from Old French and Latin.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To take back a message; to report, announce.^[2][6][1]
2. lēgātiōnem renūntiāre: to report on an embassy;^[2] repudium renūntiāre: to announce the breaking off of an engagement.^[2]
3. To declare (a candidate) elected; to proclaim.^[2][6]
4. To send word cancelling an invitation or engagement.^[2]
5. To call off (an agreement, friendship); (with dative) to give up, renounce.^[2][1][7]

Word family

• abrenūntiō
• renūntiātiō
• renuntiātor
• renuntius

Related words

• nūntius
• nūntiō
• ēnūntiō
• pronūntiō
• English renounce

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
4. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com