vetulus

Forms

vetulus (feminine vetula, neuter vetulum); first/second-declension adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin vetus (“old”) + -ulus, a diminutive.^[2][1][3] De Vaan traces vetus to Proto-Italic *wetos- (“year”) and Proto-Indo-European *wet-os- (“year”).^[4] Cognate with Hittite witt- (“year”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Plautus.^[4] Plautus uses it of a decrepit old man, and as a noun for a little old man.^[3][5]

Semantic evolution

It means somewhat advanced in years, elderly, ageing.^[2] Cicero applies it to a gladiator and to horses, and contrasts old trees with young ones.^[3][2] Catullus has old Falernian wine and Horace an old crow.^[3] As a noun, ⟨vetula⟩ is a little old woman in Plautus, Juvenal and Martial, and Cicero jokingly addresses a friend as ⟨mī vetule⟩, my little old fellow.^[3] Köbler also finds it in the Bible.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus of a decrepit old man.^[3][4][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of a gladiator, of horses and of trees.^[3][2][5]
• 81/79–52/50 BC – Catullus of old wine.^[3][5]
• c. 67–c. 127 AD – Juvenal of an old woman.^[3][5]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Somewhat advanced in years, elderly, ageing; little old, poor old.^[2][3][1]
2. Of things, old: of trees, wine, jars.^[2][3]

Noun

1. A little old man;^[3][1] vetula, a little old woman.^[3][1]
2. Jokingly, mī vetule, my little old fellow.^[3]

Related words

• vetus
• vetustus

Usage notes

Medieval Latin has a vetulus meaning a cowherd, from vitulus “calf”.^[6][5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c d de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ a b c d e f g Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill