zelus

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈzeː.ɫʊs]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈd͡zɛː.lus]^[1]

Forms

zēlus m (genitive zēlī); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ζῆλος (zêlos, “zeal, rivalry”), which Köbler, after Frisk, takes as probably related to ζητέω (zētéō, “to seek”).^[2][1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's and Lewis and Short's earliest citation is from Vitruvius, of jealousy.^[2][4] Köbler dates Vitruvius c. 84–c. 25 BC.^[3]

Semantic evolution

It meant a spirit of rivalry or emulation, jealousy, as in Vitruvius, and later zeal, ardour, as in Prudentius, Ausonius, Jerome and the Vulgate.^[2][4][5]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant zeal, jealousy, emulation.^[6] Medieval Latin used it for hatred, envy, jealousy.^[7] It survives in Italian zelo, French zèle and Spanish celo, and English zeal came in the late 14th century from Late Latin zelus.^[1][8] Medieval Latin zelōsus gave English zealous, and Old French jalos from it gave English jealous about 1200.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 84–c. 25 BC – Vitruvius uses it of jealousy.^[2][3]
• c. 383–419/420 AD – Jerome uses it of zeal.^[5][3]
• c. 1200 – English jealous is recorded.^[8]
• late 14th century – English zeal is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. Rivalry, emulation; jealousy.^[2]
2. (Late Latin) Zeal, ardour.^[4][5]
3. (Medieval Latin) Hatred, envy.^[7]

Word family

• zēlivira

Related words

• zēlanter
• zēlātor
• zēlō
• zēlōsus
• zēlōtes
• zēlotypa
• zēlotypia
• zēlotypus
• English zeal
• English zealous
• English jealous

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
6. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
7. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
8. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com