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sarcinula

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word sarcinula

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
81/79–52/50 BC, Catullus
Ultimate origin
Latin sarciō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin sarcina
Latin sarcinula

Forms

sarcinula f (genitive sarcinulae); first declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin sarcina (“pack, bundle”) + -ula, a diminutive.[2][1][3] De Vaan lists the noun sarcina among the derivatives of sarciō (“to mend”),[4] which goes back to Proto-Italic *sark-je/o- and Proto-Indo-European *srk-ie/o- (“to make good, emend”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its earliest use is in Catullus, aptis sarcinulis et expeditis, “with light and handy little packs”;[5][6][7] Köbler dates it from Pliny the Elder.[3]

Semantic evolution

It means a small, light pack or bundle, and in the plural one's baggage, a sense Lewis and Short call mostly post-Augustan.[2][5] Petronius uses it of packing up for a journey and of dividing shared belongings, communes sarcinulas partiamur, and Pliny the Younger of tying up one's luggage.[5][6][7] Juvenal uses it jokingly of a girl's small fortune or dowry and quotes the formula of divorce, collige sarcinulas, et exi, “pack your things and go”.[2][5][7] Gellius and Augustine use the singular of a bag from which a book is taken, and the Vulgate has it in Judges.[5][6] In medieval Britain it meant luggage, one's movable goods, and a small load, also in a figurative sense.[8]

Timeline

  • 81/79–52/50 BC – Catullus uses it of light baggage.[5][7][3]
  • before 66 AD – Petronius uses it of shared belongings.[2][7][3]
  • c. 67–c. 127 AD – Juvenal uses it of a dowry and in the divorce formula.[2][3]
  • c. 165 AD – Gellius uses it of a bag holding a book.[5][6][3]
  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate has it in Judges.[5][3]
  • c. 1152 – A document records Maria and her nuns leaving the church of Stratford with their belongings.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A small, light pack or bundle.[2][5][7]
  2. (plural) One's baggage, belongings, effects.[2][5][6]
  3. (plural, figurative) A girl's little fortune, her dowry.[5][6][7]
  4. (Medieval Latin) A small load, a burden.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  4. ^ a b 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 e f g h i j k Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  8. ^ 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
Cite this entry

“Sarcinula.” Etymologically, 20 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/sarcinula. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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