stupiditas

Forms

stupiditās f (genitive stupiditātis); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin stupidus + -tās.^[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest record is a line of the tragedian Accius (170–c. 90 BC),^[3] quoted by Nonius,^[4] where it means senselessness or stupidity.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The word was very rare in Classical Latin:^[4] besides Accius, only Cicero has it, in the second Philippic, with incredibilis, “unbelievable stupidity”.^[4][5] Later it appears in Arnobius, Nonius Marcellus and Eugraphius.^[1][5] From Latin it passed into English as stupidity and into German as Stupidität.^[1][6]

Timeline

• 170–c. 90 BC – Accius uses it in a tragedy.^[4][5][3]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero speaks of “unbelievable stupidity” in the second Philippic.^[4][3]
• 1540s – Borrowed into English as stupidity.^[6]

Meanings

Noun

1. Stupidity, senselessness, dullness.^[2][4][5]

Related words

• English stupidity

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com