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segmentum

Etymology and origin of the Latin word segmentum

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Ovid
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*sek-)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin segmentum
English segment

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [seːɡˈmɛn.tũː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [seɡˈmɛn.tum][1]

Forms

sēgmentum n (genitive sēgmentī); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is from secō “to cut” with the suffix -mentum, with ⟨g⟩ for ⟨c⟩ before the nasal.[2][1][3] Köbler traces it to Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to cut”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Ovid, of decorative pieces on garments.[2] Köbler dates Ovid 43 BC–18 AD.[4]

Semantic evolution

In Ovid it meant a piece of fabric or metal sewn on garments as decoration, strips of coloured cloth.[2][5][3] In Pliny the Elder it meant a piece cut off, a section, a segment of a figure and a zone of the earth.[2][5] Lewis and Short call it not ante-Augustan and mostly plural.[6]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant a piece, segment, part, shaving.[7] British Medieval Latin used it for decorative pieces on garments, explaining it as if secāmenta.[8] It was borrowed into French segment and Italian segmento, and English segment came in the 1560s in geometry.[1][3]

Timeline

  • 43 BC–18 AD – Ovid uses it of garment decorations.[2][4]
  • 23/24–79 AD – Pliny the Elder uses it of a section and of a zone.[2][5][4]
  • 1560s – English segment is recorded.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A piece cut off, a section; a segment of a figure; a zone.[2][5]
  2. A decorative piece on a garment.[2]

Word family

  • segmentārius
  • segmentātus

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b c d Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  8. ^ 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

Borrowed into

Cite this entry

“Segmentum.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/segmentum. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·