A note on Latin <i>nota</i> ‘mark, sign’
Abstract In this short etymological note, we derive Lat. nota ‘mark, sign’ from the PIE root *gnet- ‘press, knead’ (OE cnedan , OCS gnetǫ , etc.). It is argued that nota < * gnoteh 2 initially denoted impressed or branded marks, in contradistinction to signum < *seknom (from the root of secō ‘cut’), which denoted carved or incised signs.
Authors
- Ranko Matasović (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7068-3036)
Institutions
- University of Zagreb (HR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Latin Linguistics
- Published
- 2025-05-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1515/joll-2025-2001
- Primary Topic
- Linguistics and language evolution
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00