Etymologically
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syndicus

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈsyn.dɪ.kʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈsin.di.kus][1]

Forms

syndicus m (genitive syndicī); second declension[1] Medieval spellings include sindicus, scindicus and cyndicus.[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek σύνδικος (súndikos, “advocate”),[1][4][5] formed from σύν (sún, “together”) and δίκη (díkē, “justice, right”).[3] As an adjective the Greek word meant “belonging jointly to”, and as a noun a public advocate.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

It appears in the jurist Gaius, quoted in the Digest, for a person appointed to represent a corporation or collegium at law.[4][7][3]

Semantic evolution

Georges notes that the purely Latin word for this was actor.[7] In texts of Roman law it was also used for the defensor civitatis, the city's advocate.[8]

In medieval Latin it named a syndic, the plenipotentiary or proctor of a city magistrate,[8] and generally a representative or agent in legal affairs; it is often paired with procurator, and in church use the priest saying “oremus” is compared to a syndic speaking for many.[2] French took it as syndic in the 14th century, and English borrowed the French word about 1600 for a civil magistrate.[6]

Timeline

  • 140–180 AD – Gaius uses it for the legal representative of a corporation.[4][3]
  • 533 AD – The Digest uses it in several passages.[5][3]
  • 1279 – A Gascon roll pairs sindicus with procurator for the representative of a city community.[2]
  • c. 1600 – English borrows the French form as syndic.[6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (law) A representative of a corporation or collegium at law, a syndic.[4][5]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A city magistrate's proctor, a plenipotentiary.[8]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A representative or agent in legal affairs, an advocate.[2]
  • English syndic

References

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