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serietas

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word serietas

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
c. 310–394 AD, Ausonius
Ultimate origin
Latin sērius
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin serius
Italian serio
Latin serietas
From the same root
Latin serio ← serius
Latin seriosus ← serius
Italian seriamente ← serio

Forms

sēriĕtās f (genitive sēriĕtātis); third declension[1][2]

Etymology

It is from Latin sērius (“serious, earnest”) + -tās,[1][2] an abstract noun of Late Latin.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Ausonius, in the Parentalia,[1][2][3] meaning seriousness or an earnest, grave manner.[1][5]

Semantic evolution

The word is rare in antiquity: besides Ausonius, the dictionaries cite only Sidonius Apollinaris.[1][2][6]

Medieval writers used it more often.[7][4] Niermeyer glosses it as a dignified bearing,[7] and the DMLBS has the general sense of gravity or earnestness, with examples from Bede and William of Malmesbury, as well as a grave subject or serious matter.[4] Du Cange defines it as the weighing of serious things, or gravity.[8] It is the source of Italian serietà.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 310–394 AD – Ausonius uses it in the Parentalia for an earnest, serious manner.[1][3]
  • c. 431–486 AD – Sidonius Apollinaris uses it in his poems.[1][3]
  • Middle Ages – British writers use it for gravity and for a serious matter.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Seriousness, gravity, earnestness.[1][2][5]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A dignified bearing.[7]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A grave subject, a serious matter.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  2. ^ a b c d e Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  3. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  4. ^ a b c d e 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
  5. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ a b Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  7. ^ a b c Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  8. ^ du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
Cite this entry

“Serietas.” Etymologically, 24 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/serietas. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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