summoneo

Forms

summoneō (present infinitive summonēre, perfect active summonuī, supine summonitum); second conjugation^[1] The OLD enters it as submoneō;^[2] the DMLBS has the medieval spellings summonere and sumonire.^[3]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin sub- + moneō (“to remind, advise”), with the prefix assimilated.^[2][1][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in Terence, meaning to advise or remind privately: summonuit me Parmeno, “Parmeno gave me a hint”.^[5][2]

Semantic evolution

In Classical Latin it is very rare: besides Terence, Suetonius has it of prompting, of greeting the senators one by one by name with no one prompting.^[5][2]

In Medieval Latin it became a legal and administrative term: to call up for military service, to summon someone to an assembly or a court, to convene, and to call upon a person by legal process.^[6][3] Through Old French somondre it gave English summon, which also owes something to the medieval Latin use.^[4][1]

Timeline

• 190–159 BC – Terence uses it of giving someone a private hint.^[5][2][7]
• c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius uses it of prompting someone.^[5][2][7]
• second half of the 11th century–1109 – Anselm of Canterbury uses it to summon those addressed to Canterbury to receive their consecration.^[3][7]
• c. 1200 – English summon appears, from Anglo-French and Old French.^[4]

Meanings

Verb

1. To remind or advise privately, give a hint, prompt.^[2][5][8]
2. (Medieval Latin) To call up for military service.^[6][3]
3. (Medieval Latin) To summon to an assembly or meeting; to convene.^[6][3]
4. (Medieval Latin, law) To cite to appear in court; to call upon by legal process.^[6][3]
5. (Medieval Latin) To order, give notice to, exhort.^[3]

Related words

• English summon
• English summons

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g 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
4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
7. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
8. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn