Etymologically
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salmo

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈsaɫ.moː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈsal.mo][1]

Forms

salmō m (genitive salmōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

The origin is unknown.[2][1] It is possibly from a Celtic or Gaulish word,[1][3] and Walde treats it, like salar “trout”, as Celtic.[4] The common derivation from saliō1 (“to leap”), as the “leaper”, has been dismissed as folk etymology,[1] though Etymonline still calls it probable[3] and Köbler connects it, with a query, to Proto-Indo-European *sel- (“to jump”).[5] An equation with Proto-Slavic *sòmъ (“catfish”) has not been well received.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Pliny the Elder is the first to name the salmon.[2][6][5]

Semantic evolution

Ausonius uses it in the Mosella.[6][7] In medieval Latin it remained the name of the salmon:[8] Alcuin writes of catching salmon in the Loire, and the Domesday Book records fisheries that paid rents in salmon.[8] French saumon and English salmon come from it through Old French,[3] and Italian salmone continues it.[9]

Timeline

  • 23/24–79 AD – Pliny the Elder names the salmon.[2][6][5]
  • c. 310–394 AD – Ausonius uses it in the Mosella.[6][7][5]
  • 798 – Alcuin writes of catching salmon in the Loire.[8]
  • early 13th century – English borrows the word, through Anglo-French, as samoun.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A salmon.[2][6][8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Walde, Alois (1906), Lateinisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
  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 Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  8. ^ 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
  9. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier