sextarius

Forms

sextārius m (genitive sextāriī or sextārī); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin sextus (“sixth”) + -ārius.^[2][3][1][4] The ordinal goes back to Proto-Italic *seks-to- (“sixth”), from *seks (“six”), Proto-Indo-European *(s)ueks (“six”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Cato,^[4] who has sixty-four sextarii of old sea water in a recipe and a sextarius for oil in a list of equipment.^[2]

Semantic evolution

It is a measure of capacity, liquid or dry, a sixth of a congius or twelve cyathī,^[2] about 0.54 litres as a liquid measure.^[1] Cicero speaks of having to pay a mina for a sextarius of water, and Livy has the legions contribute pounds of spelt and sextarii of wine.^[2] The jurist Paul uses it of grain stolen from a ship.^[2] From Cato on it is also the measuring vessel that holds a sextarius,^[2][5] and in general it can be the sixth part of any measure or weight.^[3][5] In medieval Latin it is the sester, a dry or liquid measure, and also a measure of land, the area sown with a sextarius of grain.^[6][7] Köbler finds it in a charter of 754.^[8]

Timeline

• 234–149 BC – Cato of a measure and of a measuring vessel.^[2][4]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of a sextarius of water.^[2]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy of sextarii of wine for the legions.^[2]
• 1st half of 3rd century AD – Paul of a dry measure of grain.^[2][8]
• 754 – In a charter.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. A measure of capacity, liquid or dry, a sixth of a congius (about a pint).^[2][3][1]
2. A measuring vessel holding a sextarius.^[2][5]
3. The sixth part of a measure or weight.^[3][5]
4. (Medieval Latin) A sester; a measure of land, the area sown with a sextarius of grain.^[6][7]

Word family

• sextāriolus

Related words

• sextus
• sex
• sextāns

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 Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c d 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 Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
7. ^ a b 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
8. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de