Etymologically
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singularitas

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Forms

singulāritās f (genitive singulāritātis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin singulāris (“single, alone”) + -tās,[1][2][3] a post-Classical abstract noun.[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Tertullian, meaning the state of being alone or single, singleness,[2][5] and in particular an unmarried life.[3][5][4]

Semantic evolution

Grammarians used it for the singular number, from Charisius on, against plūrālitās, the plural.[2][3] In arithmetic and philosophy it meant unity or the number one, in Martianus Capella and Chalcidius,[3][5] and Augustine uses it for unity.[4] In Ecclesiastical Latin it is oneness or singularity.[6]

The DMLBS records the medieval senses: singleness, as opposed to multiplicity; a special quality or distinctive feature; and something peculiar or eccentric; in a legal text it refers to a matter belonging to one person's jurisdiction.[7] English singularity comes from it, partly through Old French.[8]

Timeline

  • c. 160–220 AD – Tertullian uses it for singleness and for celibacy.[2][5][9]
  • c. 362 AD – Charisius uses it for the singular number.[2][9]
  • 354–430 AD – Augustine uses it for unity.[4][9]
  • 435/439 AD – Salvian uses it in the sense of singleness.[2][9]
  • 5th century AD – Martianus Capella uses it for the number one.[3][5][9]
  • early 13th century – Borrowed into English as singularity, for unusual behaviour.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The state of being alone or single, singleness; uniqueness.[2][5][4]
  2. An unmarried life, celibacy.[3][5][4]
  3. (grammar) The singular number.[2][3][5]
  4. (arithmetic) Unity, the number one.[2][3][5]
  5. (Ecclesiastical Latin) Oneness, singularity.[6]
  6. (Medieval Latin) A special quality or distinctive feature; a peculiarity.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  4. ^ a b c d e f Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  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 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  9. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de