Etymologically

1000s

Latin words first recorded in the 11th century

50 Latin words whose earliest known written record dates from the 11th century, earliest first. Words dated only to part of the century follow the ones with a year.

  1. cursarius

    1032 BC–55 BC

    It is from Latin cursus + -ārius, formed in Medieval Latin; the MLW compares cursōrius (“of running”). cursus (“a running, course”) is the noun of currō (“to run”).

  2. diarius

    1004

    It is from Latin diēs (“day”), with the suffix -ārius; the OLD derives the classical noun diārium in the same way, with -ārium. Etymonline treats that noun as the neuter of an adjective “daily”, and…

  3. bicarium

    1012–1018

    It is probably from Ancient Greek βῖκος (bîkos, “wine jar, vase”), through an unattested Greek diminutive. The Greek word is itself of uncertain origin; Köbler, after Frisk, thinks it probably…

  4. antimonium

    1020–1087

    The origin is uncertain. One view, given by Wiktionary, takes it from Arabic إِثْمِد (ʔiṯmid), which goes back to Egyptian sdm; Etymonline thinks it probably a Latinization of late Greek στίμμι…

  5. assecuro

    1020

    It is from Latin ad- + sēcūrus (“free from care, safe”). The MLW compares Italian assicurare and French assurer. English assure comes from Old French asseurer.

  6. brunus

    1020–1087

    It is borrowed from Old High German brūn (“brown”), from Proto-Germanic *brūnaz; the MLW and Niermeyer also call it Germanic. Köbler connects it with Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“shining, brown”)…

  7. defensivus

    1020–1087

    It is from Latin dēfendō (“to ward off, defend”), a Medieval Latin formation on its past participle stem ⟨dēfēns-⟩ with the suffix -īvus.

  8. epidemia

    1020–1087

    It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ἐπιδήμια (epidḗmia), the neuter plural of ἐπιδήμιος (epidḗmios), from ἐπί (epí, “upon”) and δῆμος (dêmos, “people”). The DMLBS also compares the noun ἐπιδημία…

  9. mala

    1020

    1. The word for “cheek, jaw” is inherited from Proto-Italic *smakslā, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *smḱ-slo/h₂- (“beard, chin”). māxilla is its diminutive. Cognates include Old Irish smech…

  10. manutenentia

    1020

    It is a noun formed in the Middle Ages, from Medieval Latin manūteneō (“to maintain, protect”), a verb made from manus (“hand”) and teneō (“to hold”), literally “to hold by the hand”. Du Cange…

  11. thesauraria

    1020–1034

    It is from Latin thēsaurārius (“treasurer”), from thēsaurus (“treasure”).

  12. alberga

    1024

    It came into Latin through Romance, from Frankish *harjabergu (“barracks; shelter”): Wiktionary derives it from a Romance descendant of the Early Medieval Latin heribergo of the Reichenau Glossary…

  13. cognitivus

    1030–1070

    It is a medieval formation, from Latin cognōscō (“to get to know”) + -īvus, made on the stem of the participle cognitus (“known”). The DMLBS compares the parallel ⟨cognōscitīvus⟩.

  14. seriosus

    1030–1070

    It is from Latin sērius (“serious, earnest”) + -ōsus. It is the source of French sérieux and Italian serioso, and through Old French serios of English serious.

  15. secretarius

    1032

    It is from Medieval Latin sēcrētus (“secret, private”) + -ārius, first a noun use of an adjective meaning “private, secret”. Compare Late Latin sēcrētārium (“council chamber”). It is the source of…

  16. stallum

    1036

    Its origin is disputed. Wiktionary and Conte take it as borrowed from Frankish *stall (“stall, stable”), and Etymonline gives a Germanic source, comparing Old High German stal (“standing place”)…

  17. manuscriptum

    1039

    It is from Latin manus (“hand”) + scrībō (“to write”). Etymonline traces the medieval noun to the phrase ⟨manū scrīptus⟩ “written by hand”, with the ablative of the noun and the past participle of…

  18. apogaeum

    1050

    It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀπόγειον (apógeion), the neuter of the adjective ἀπόγειος (apógeios, “from the land; far from the earth”), from ἀπό (apó, “off, away”) and γῆ (gê, “earth”). In…

  19. montaneus

    1050

    It is from Latin montānus (“of mountains”), which is from mōns (“mountain”).

  20. personaticum

    1057

    It is from Latin persōna (“person, (Medieval Latin) parson”).

  21. praeferentia

    1062

    It is a Medieval Latin formation, from Latin praeferēns + -ia, the present participle of praeferō (“to carry before; to prefer”).

  22. agentia

    1070–1099

    It is from Latin agēns (“doing, acting”) + -ia, an abstract noun from the present participle of agō (“to drive, do”).

  23. morsellum

    1070–1099

    It is a Medieval Latin word, formed from Latin morsum (“piece, bite”) + -ellus as a diminutive. Its base is the neuter of morsus (“bitten; a bite”), the past participle of mordeō (“to bite”)…

  24. parlamentum

    1070

    Wiktionary takes it from the Romance words for a talk or meeting: it is borrowed from Italian parlamento and Old French parlement, which the DMLBS compares. These are formed from Medieval Latin…

  25. manerium

    1072

    It is borrowed from Anglo-Norman maner (“dwelling”), the Anglo-Norman counterpart of Old French manoir (“abode, dwelling; manor”), a noun use of maneir (“to dwell”), from Latin maneō (“to stay…

  26. convito

    1073–1085

    It is from Latin invītō (“to invite”), influenced by the unrelated convīvium (“banquet”). The MLW compares Old French convier and refers to von Wartburg's French etymological dictionary.

  27. bastardus

    1074–1075

    The origin is uncertain. The usual explanation, given by Niermeyer, is that it is from Latin bastum (“packsaddle”), meaning one begotten on a packsaddle; Etymonline explains Old French bastard in…

  28. facienda

    1076

    It is from Latin faciō (“to do, make”), the neuter plural of its gerundive, ⟨facienda⟩ “things to be done”, taken as a feminine singular.

  29. sterlingus

    1078

    It is from Middle English sterling, the vernacular name of the English silver penny, as the DMLBS gives it. Niermeyer calls it an Anglo-Saxon word and, after Grierson, explains it as a coin of…

  30. garcio

    1080–1099

    It is borrowed from Old French garçon (“boy, servant”), of Germanic origin; Wiktionary instead derives it from an earlier ⟨*warciō⟩, from Frankish *wrakkijō (“mercenary, servant”). Etymonline traces…

  31. murdrum

    1080

    It is borrowed from Frankish *murþr (“murder”), from Proto-Germanic *murþrą. The DMLBS also points to Middle English murder and Old French murdre, which were current beside it.

  32. cappellus

    1083–1088

    It is from Latin cappa (“cape, cap”) + -ellus, a diminutive. It lived on in Italian cappello, Spanish capillo and French chapeau.

  33. blondus

    1085–1086

    It is a Medieval Latin word of unknown origin, usually considered Germanic. Köbler and the MLW take it from Germanic, Köbler as borrowed from Proto-Germanic *blundaz, which he connects with…

  34. passagium

    1085–1086

    It is a medieval word, which the DMLBS compares with Old French passage and Middle English passage, with an assumed Vulgar Latin *passaticum and with the verb *passō (“to pass”), from Latin passus…

  35. quarentena

    1085–1086

    It is a medieval noun of time and measure from Latin quadrāgēnī (“forty each”), of which Köbler treats it as a form of the feminine quadrāgēna. Du Cange already derived it from that Latin form, not…

  36. superplus

    1085–1086

    It is formed from Latin super (“over, above”) + plūs (“more”) in Medieval Latin. The DMLBS compares the vernacular ⟨surplus⟩ of Anglo-Norman.

  37. firmarius

    1086

    It is from Latin firma (“fixed payment, lease”) + -ārius. The MLW compares French fermier.

  38. intrata

    1086

    It is a noun from Latin intrō (“to enter”), made from its past participle, used both as a feminine singular and as a neuter plural. It matches Italian entrata, Spanish entrada and French entrée.

  39. iurata

    1091

    Used as a noun, it is the feminine past participle from Latin iūrō (“to swear”), which comes from iūs (“law, right”).

  40. algorismus

    1100–1199

    It is borrowed from Arabic الخَوَارِزْمِيّ (al-ḵawārizmiyy), the surname of the 9th-century mathematician Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, who taught reckoning with the Indian numerals. Etymonline…

  41. bordellum

    1100

    Niermeyer and Wiktionary explain it as a diminutive, from Latin borda (“cottage, hut”) + -ellus. That noun goes back to Frankish *bord (“board”), and Etymonline describes Old French borde as a hut…

  42. correlatio

    1100–1130

    It is a Medieval Latin formation, from Latin com- (“with, together”) + relātiō (“relation, reference”).

  43. discantus

    1100–1199

    It is from Latin dis- (“apart”) + cantus (“song, singing”), a Medieval Latin term of music. cantus is from canō (“to sing”), which de Vaan traces back to Proto-Italic *kan-e(je)- and…

  44. Gobelinus

    1100–1199

    It is borrowed from Old French gobelin according to the DMLBS, while Niermeyer marks it as Germanic, and Köbler compares Middle High German kobolt (“household spirit”), adding that its further…

  45. infamosus

    1100–1199

    It is from Latin īnfāmis (“disreputable, infamous”) + -ōsus (“full of”). Etymonline analyses it instead as in- (“not”) and fāmōsus (“celebrated”).

  46. musicalis

    1100–1199

    It is a Medieval Latin formation, from Latin mūsica (“music”) + -ālis (“relating to”).

  47. physicalis

    1100

    It is from Latin physicus + -ālis, the adjective physicus (“natural, of nature”) being a borrowing of Ancient Greek φυσικός (phusikós). Wiktionary derives it instead from the noun physica (“natural…

  48. scarlata

    1100

    It is from Medieval Latin scarlatum (“scarlet, scarlet cloth”), a medieval word with neuter and feminine forms. Köbler takes scarlatum as a loanword from a Persian word for a splendid garment, and…

  49. theosophia

    1100–1199

    It is borrowed from Ancient Greek θεοσοφία (theosophía, “knowledge of things divine”), from θεός (theós, “god”) and σοφία (sophía, “wisdom”).

  50. virtualis

    1100–1199

    It is a medieval formation, from Latin virtūs + -ālis. The noun virtus meant “manliness” and then “excellence, potency, efficacy”, the sense the adjective is built on.

All Latin words by century →