vocatus

Forms

vocātus m (genitive vocātūs); fourth declension^[1][2]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin vocō (“to call”) + -tus, the action noun of the verb.^[1][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cicero, in the De oratore (81–43 BC),^[5] uses the ablative vocatu of a summons to the Senate: the senators came to the Curia at Drusus' call.^[2][4][6]

Semantic evolution

In prose the noun is found almost only in the ablative vocātū, “at the call or invitation of”.^[2][4] Virgil uses the plural for the calls or invocations of a speaker addressing his spear.^[2][4][7] Suetonius has it of an invitation to dinner.^[2][4][7] VOLI notes its legal use for a summons to court.^[3]

In medieval documents vocatus is also used with the meaning of advocatus (see Usage notes).^[8][5]

Timeline

• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses vocatu of a summons to the Senate.^[2][4][5]
• 70–19 BC – Virgil uses the plural vocatus for calls or invocations in the Aeneid.^[2][4][7]
• c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius uses vocatu of an invitation to dinner.^[2][4][7]
• 807–808 – Freising charters use vocatus for an advocate.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. An urgent call; an invocation.^[1][2][4]
2. An official summons, as to the Senate;^[1][4][3] (law) a summons to court.^[1][4][3]
3. An invitation, especially to dinner.^[1][2][4]

Usage notes

Medieval Latin also has vocatus (spelled vogatus too) meaning the same as advocatus: an ecclesiastical advocate or an attorney, deputy or trustee.^[8] The participle vocātus “called” of vocō was used in medieval texts of a bishop elected but not yet consecrated.^[8][5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b c d Bianchi, Rossella; Lelli, Olga (2014), VOLI: Vocabolario di latino, Florence: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
7. ^ a b c d Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
8. ^ a b c Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill