Etymologically
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vigilanter

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Forms

vigilanter (comparative vigilantius, superlative vigilantissimē)[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin vigilāns (“watchful”) + -ter,[2][3] from the present participle of vigilō (“to keep awake, watch”);[4][5] Köbler traces it to vigil (“awake, watchful”).[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first recorded use is in Cicero,[5][6] who uses it of looking after oneself and of governing a province with alert care.[3]

Semantic evolution

Cicero uses all its degrees: he promises to strive more vigilantly (ēnītar vigilantius), urges that Antony be guarded against more carefully and more vigilantly, and speaks of someone being harassed most vehemently and most vigilantly.[3][6][7] Ammianus Marcellinus pairs it with fortiter, and Augustine and the jurists of the Digest also use it.[3][7]

Medieval writers kept it for watchfulness, as Bede does of fighting vices and Peter of Blois of guarding a vineyard.[8] The Chronicle of Fontenelle uses it for “wisely, prudently”.[9]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of governing a province.[3][5]
  • c. 390 AD – Ammianus Marcellinus uses it.[3][5]
  • 354–430 AD – Augustine uses the comparative.[3][5]
  • 1st third of the 8th century AD – Bede urges fighting vices vigilantly.[8][5]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. With alertness, vigilantly, watchfully; with unremitting care.[2][3][6]
  2. (Medieval Latin) Prudently, wisely.[9]

References

  1. ^ 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 d e f g h Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  4. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  8. ^ a b 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 du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre