1. saeculum — de Vaan
saeculum 'generation, breed, lifetime' [η. ο] (Ρ1.+) Pit. *sai-tlo-. PIE *seh2i-t!o- [n.] (or *sh2ei-tlo-) 'lifespan'. IE cognates: W. hoedl, Bret, hoozl > — [de Vaan, s.v. saeculum, p. 547]
The corpus record — Latin
saeculum
saeculum
generation, breed, lifetime
Generated live from the audited Latin corpus — every figure on this page is a database query, not prose from memory.
Where it lives
- Ad Martyras 6 · 40.32/10k
- Lydia, Appendix Vergiliana 1 · 18.76/10k
- Ad Uxorem 7 · 16.85/10k
- Dittochaeon 2 · 16.34/10k
- Medicamina faciei femineae 1 · 16.31/10k
- Cupido cruciatur 1 · 13.57/10k
- De Spectaculis 8 · 12.57/10k
- Panegyricus dictus Probino et Olybrio consulibus 2 · 11.75/10k
- Contra Symmachum 14 · 11.65/10k
- De idolatria 8 · 11.59/10k
- De Cultu Feminarum 5 · 9.76/10k
- Griphus Ternarii numeri 1 · 9.35/10k
Densest 12 of 152 attested works shown, by occurrences per 10,000 attested tokens.
What it meant
2. saecŭlum — Lewis & Short
saecŭlum (poet., esp. Lucretian, sae-clum; less correctly sēcŭlum, sē-clum), i, n.dim.etym. dub.; perh. root si- = sa-; Gr. sa/w, to sift; Lat. sero, satus; whence Saturnus, etc.; hence, orig.,
I a race, breed, generation (freq. in Lucr.; very rare in later writers; usu. in plur.):
saecla propagare,Lucr. 1, 21; cf. id. 2, 173; 5, 850:
nec toties possent generatim saecla referre Naturam parentum,id. 1, 597:
saecla animantum,i. e. animals, id. 2, 78; 5, 855:
hominum,id. 1, 467; 5, 339; 6, 722:
ferarum,id. 2, 995; 3, 753; 4, 413; 4, 686; cf.:
silvestria ferarum,id. 5, 967:
serpentia ferarum,id. 6, 766:
mortalia,id. 5, 805; 5, 982; 5, 1238:
bucera (with lanigerae pecudes),id. 5, 866; 6, 1245; cf.:
vetusta cornicum (with corvorum greges),id. 5, 1084:
aurea pavonum,id. 2, 503:
totisque expectent saecula ripis,i. e. the shades of the infernal regions, Stat. Th. 11, 592.—Sing.:
et muliebre oritur patrio de semine saeclum,the female sex, women, Lucr. 4, 1223; so,
muliebre,id. 5, 1020; 2, 10 sq.—
II Transf.
A Like genea/.
1 The ordinary lifetime of the human species, a lifetime, generation, age (of thirty-three years; class.; esp. freq. in signif. 2. infra; cf. Schoem. ad Cic. N. D. 1, 9, 21):
cum ad idem, unde semel profecta sunt, cuncta astra redierint ... tum ille vere vertens annus appellari potest: in quo vix dicere audeo, quam multa saecula hominum teneantur,Cic. Rep. 6, 22, 24 Mos.:
cum ex hac parte saecula plura numerentur,Liv. 9, 18:
quorum (Socratis atque Epicuri) aetates non annis sed saeculis scimus esse disjunctas,Hier. Vit. Cler. 4, p. 262; cf. Censor. de Die Nat. 17; Auct. ap. Serv. Verg. A. 8, 508; id. E. 4, 5.—
(b) Esp., the lifetime or reign of a ruler:
illustrari saeculum suum ejusmodi exemplo arbitrabatur,Plin. Ep. 4, 11, 6:
digna saeculo tuo,id. ib. 10, 1, 2.—
2 The human race living in a particular age, a generation, an age, the times: serit arbores quae alteri saeculo prosient, Caecil. ap. Cic. Sen. 7, 24:
in id saeculum Romuli cecidit aetas, cum jam plena Graecia poëtarum esset,Cic. Rep. 2, 10, 18 (for which:
quorum aetas cum in eorum tempora incidisset,id. Or. 12, 39):
saeculorum reliquorum judicium,id. Div. 1, 19, 36:
ipse fortasse in hujus saeculi errore versor,id. Par. 6, 3, 50; cf.:
hujus saeculi insolentia,id. Phil. 9, 6, 23; and: o nostri infamia saecli, Ov. M. 8, 97; cf.
also: novi ego hoc saeculum, moribus quibus siet,Plaut. Trin. 2, 2, 6; so,
hujus saecli mores,id. Truc. prol. 13; and:
hoccine saeclum! o scelera! o genera sacrilega, o hominem impurum!Ter. Ad. 3, 2, 6; cf. id. Eun. 2, 2, 15:
nec mutam repertam esse dicunt mulierem ullo in saeculo,Plaut. Aul. 2, 1, 7:
Cato rudi saeculo litteras Graecas didicit,Quint. 12, 11, 23; so,
rude,id. 2, 5, 23:
grave ne rediret Saeculum Pyrrhae,Hor. C. 1, 2, 6:
primo statim beatissimi saeculi ortu,Tac. Agr. 3; so,
beatissimum,id. ib. 44:
felix et aureum,id. Or. 12; Quint. 8, 6, 24:
aureum,Sen. Contr. 2, 17; Lact. 5, 6, 13; cf.:
aurea saecula,Verg. A. 6, 792; Ov. A. A. 2, 277:
his jungendi sunt Diocletianus aurei parens saeculi, et Maximianus, ut vulgo dicitur, ferrei,Lampr. Elag. 35:
ceteri, qui dii ex hominibus facti esse dicuntur, minus eruditis hominum saeculis fuerunt (with Romuli aetas),Cic. Rep. 2, 10, 18; cf.:
res publica constituta non unā hominum vitā sed aliquot saeculis et aetatibus,id. ib. 2, 1, 2:
perpetuā saeculorum admiratione celebrantur,Quint. 11, 1, 13:
fecunda culpae saecula,Hor. C. 3, 6, 17:
ferro duravit saecula,id. Epod. 16, 65; cf.:
sic ad ferrum venistis ab auro, Saecula,Ov. M. 15, 261.—
3 The spirit of the age or times: nemo illic vitia ridet;
nec corrumpere et corrumpi saeculum vocatur,Tac. G. 19.—
B The utmost lifetime of man, a period of a hundred years, a century:
saeclum spatium annorum centum vocārunt,Varr. L. L. 6, 2, § 11 Müll.; cf. Fest. s. v. saeculares, p. 328 ib.; Censor. de Die Nat. 17:
cum (Numa) illam sapientiam constituendae civitatis duobus prope saeculis ante cognovit, quam eam Graeci natam esse senserunt,Cic. de Or. 2, 37, 154:
saeculo festas referente luces,Hor. C. 4, 6, 42; cf.:
multa virum durando saecula vincit,Verg. G. 2, 295.—
2 For an indefinitely long period, an age; plur. (so mostly):
(Saturni stella) nihil immutat sempiternis saeculorum aetatibus, quin eadem iisdem temporibus efficiat,Cic. N. D. 2, 20, 52:
aliquot saeculis post,Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 35, § 73:
cum aliquot saecula in Italiā viguisset,id. Univ. 1; so,
tot,Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 55, § 122; id. Ac. 2, 5, 15:
quot,Quint. 12, 11, 22:
multa,Cic. Rep. 2, 10, 20; 6, 26, 29; id. de Or. 2, 5, 21; id. Cat. 2, 5, 11; id. Fam. 11, 14, 3:
plurima,id. Rep. 3, 9, 14:
sexcenta,id. Fat. 12, 27:
omnia,id. Lael. 4, 15; id. Phil. 2, 22, 54:
ex omni saeculorum memoriā,id. ib. 4, 1, 3:
vir saeculorum memoriā dignus,Quint. 10, 1, 104; cf.:
ingeniorum monumenta, quae saeculis probarentur,id. 3, 7, 18:
facto in saecula ituro,to future ages, to posterity, Sil. 12, 312; so Plin. Pan. 55, 1:
in famam et saecula mitti,Luc. 10, 533: tarda gelu saeclisque effeta senectus, with (many) years, Verg. A. 8, 508.—Sing.:
propemodum saeculi res in unum diem cumulavit,Curt. 4, 16, 10:
longo putidam (anum) saeculo,Hor. Epod. 8, 1:
ut videri possit saeculo prior,Quint. 10, 1, 113.—Esp. (eccl. Lat.), the following phrases are used to express forever, to all eternity, endlessly, without end:
in saeculum,Vulg. Exod. 21, 6; id. Dan. 3, 89:
in saeculum saeculi,id. Psa. 36, 27; id. 2 Cor. 9, 9:
in saecula,id. Ps. 77, 69; id. Rom. 1, 25:
in saecula saeculorum,Tert. ad Uxor. 1, 1; Ambros. Hexaëm. 3, 17, 72; Vulg. Tob. 9, 11; id. Rom. 16, 27; id. Apoc. 1, 6 et saep.—
C Like the biblical , ai)w/n, the world, worldliness (eccl. Lat.):
immaculatus ab hoc saeculo,Vulg. Jacob. 1, 27: et servientem corpori Absolve vinclis saeculi, Prud. stef. 2, 583; so id. Cath. 5, 109; Paul. Nol. Ep. 23, 33 fin.—
D Heathenism (eccl. Lat.):
saeculi exempla,Tert. Exhort. ad Cast. 13 (al. saecularia).
In the wild
- saeculorum Tacitus, Historiae 1.2
- saeculo Tertullian, De Cultu Feminarum 1.1
- saeculo Tertullian, Ad Martyras 2
- saeculorum Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria 10.1.104
- saecula Silius Italicus, Punica 10.71
- saeculo Augustine, Epistulae. Selections. 41.9
6 of 621 attestations shown.
Where it came from
- Treated in de Vaan, Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Brill 2008) s.v. saeculum (scan p. 547; entry #1520).
- Treated in Ernout-Meillet, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue latine s.v. saeculum (scan p. 611; entry #10012).
Latin text and lemmatization derived from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-latinLit), CC BY-SA 4.0. Lewis & Short (public domain) via Perseus. This derived data is shared under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 license.