Etymologically
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transformatio

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [trãːf.foːrˈmaː.ti.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [trans.forˈmat.t͡si.o][1]

Forms

trānsfōrmātiō f (genitive trānsfōrmātiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin trānsfōrmō (“to change in shape”) + -tiō,[2][3][4] a calque of Ancient Greek μεταμόρφωσις (metamórphōsis).[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Conte's earliest example is in the commentary of Chalcidius (about AD 300), meaning a transformation or metamorphosis.[5][4]

Semantic evolution

Hilary of Poitiers used it for the Transfiguration of Christ,[5] and Augustine speaks of a desirable transformation in De Trinitate (15.8).[2][3][6] It is an Ecclesiastical Latin word,[2][7] and in British medieval Latin it also rendered the rhetorical terms metaplasm or metaphor.[8] Renaissance humanists used it for change in general (Leonardo Bruni), and the plural for Ovid's Metamorphoses.[9]

English transformation (about 1400) is from Old French and directly from the Church Latin word.[10]

Timeline

  • c. 300 AD – Chalcidius uses it in his commentary.[5][4]
  • c. 315–367/368 AD – Hilary uses it for the Transfiguration.[5][4]
  • 354–430 AD – Augustine uses it in De Trinitate.[2][4]
  • c. 1400 – English borrows it as transformacioun.[10]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A change of shape, transformation, metamorphosis.[2][3][5]
  2. (Ecclesiastical Latin) The Transfiguration of Christ.[5][8]
  3. (Medieval Latin, rhetoric) Metaplasm or metaphor.[8]
  4. (New Latin, plural) Ovid's Metamorphoses.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ 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
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  8. ^ a b c 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
  9. ^ a b Ramminger, Johann, Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, www.neulatein.de
  10. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com