sicera

Forms

sīcera f (genitive sīcerae); first declension^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek σίκερα (síkera, “strong drink”),^[1][2][3] the Septuagint's rendering of Biblical Hebrew שֵׁכָר (šēḵār), a word for intoxicating drinks,^[1][4] which Wiktionary traces to Proto-Semitic *šikar- (“alcoholic drink”).^[1]

Isidore of Seville, noting that the name is Hebrew, found that it nevertheless sounds Latin, as if from sūcus (“juice”), because the drink is pressed from the juice of grain or fruit.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is a word of Christian Latin.^[2] Tertullian uses it in his work on fasting, following a verse of Leviticus,^[2][6] and the early Latin versions of the Bible have it too.^[4]

Semantic evolution

In the Bible it named any intoxicating drink other than wine;^[2][7] the Vulgate and Jerome's letters use it this way,^[2][8] and Isidore defines it as every drink besides wine that can make one drunk.^[5] Medieval glossaries repeat the definition.^[9]

In medieval Latin it came to mean any fermented drink other than wine or beer, especially cider,^[10] and it is the source of French cidre.^[10] English has cider from Old French, first in a biblical context for “strong liquor”, then from the mid-14th century also for drink made from fruit juice.^[11]

Timeline

• c. 160–220 AD – Tertullian uses it, after the Bible.^[2][6][4]
• after 220 AD – The early Latin Bible (Itala) has it.^[4]
• 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it for strong drink beside wine.^[2][8][4]
• c. 560–636 AD – Isidore of Seville defines it and explains its name.^[5][4]
• late 13th century – English borrows cider, through Old French, for strong liquor in a biblical context.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. (Ecclesiastical Latin) An intoxicating drink other than wine, strong drink.^[2][3][12]
2. (Medieval Latin) Any fermented drink other than wine or beer, especially cider.^[10][12]

Related words

• English cider

Usage notes

Medieval texts also treat it as a neuter noun.^[10] L&S gives it as neuter, after the Greek, while Georges and Gaffiot give it as feminine of the first declension.^[2][3][6]

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 Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ a b c Isidore of Seville, Etymologiarum sive Originum libri XX, ed. W. M. Lindsay (Oxford, 1911).
6. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
7. ^ 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 Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
9. ^ Goetz, Georg (1888–1923), Corpus glossariorum Latinorum, Leipzig: Teubner; vols. VI–VII Thesaurus glossarum emendatarum, digital ed. CGLO, Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
10. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
11. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
12. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson