amanuensis

English

WOTD – 12 March 2006

Etymology

From Latin āmanuēnsis (“secretary”), from ab- (“from, off (of)”) +‎ manus (“hand”) +‎ -ensis (“of or from (a place)”), early 17th c.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˌmænjuˈɛnsɪs/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• enPR: ə-măn'yo͞o-ĕnʹsĭs

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: a‧man‧u‧en‧sis

Noun

amanuensis (plural amanuenses)

1. One employed to take dictation, or copy manuscripts.
   • 1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], “(please specify the page)”, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, pages 296-297:

     As pay was Lady Anne's object, and poor Georgiana was intended to be the amanuensis, should she be found capable of forming sentences out of disjointed hints, and of wrapping foul facts in clean composition.

2. A clerk, secretary or stenographer, or scribe.
   • 1827, John Colin Dunlop, History of Roman Literature from its Earliest Period to the Augustan Age‎^[1], volume II:

     In consequence of this fashion of authors dictating their works, expedition came to be considered of the utmost importance; it was regarded as the chief accomplishment of an amanuensis; and he alone was considered as perfect in his art, whose pen could equal the rapidity of utterance: […]

   • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC, page 12:

     “ […] We are engaged in a great work, a treatise on our river fortifications, perhaps? But since when did army officers afford the luxury of amanuenses in this simple republic? […]”

   • 1974, John Gardner, “The Warden”, in The King's Indian:

     I, his mere amanuensis, am left to do what little I can to keep the institution functioning.

Translations

one employed to take dictation

• Dutch: kopiist (nl) m, schrijver op dictaat m, secretaris (nl) m
• French: copieur (fr) m, secretaire m
• German: Kopist (de) m, Schreiber (de) m, Schreibhilfe f, Sekretär (de) m
• Irish: scríobhaí m
• Italian: amanuense (it) m or f
• Portuguese: amanuense (pt) m or f
• Spanish: amanuense (es) m

a clerk, secretary or stenographer

• Dutch: stenograaf (nl) m
• French: sténographe (fr)
• German: Schreiber (de) m, Schreiberin (de) f, Sekretär (de) m, Sekretärin (de) f
• Irish: scríobhaí m
• Portuguese: amanuense (pt) m or f, escrevente (pt) m or f

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} skribisto
• Japanese: ^{(please verify)} 書記 (ja) (しょき, syoki)
• Norwegian: ^{(please verify)} amanuensis

References

• Gamble, Harry Y. “Amanuensis.” Anchor Bible Dictionary. Vol. 1. Ed. David Noel Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992.
• Longenecker, Richard N. “Ancient Amanuenses and the Pauline Epistles.” New Dimensions in New Testament Study. Eds. Richard N. Longenecker and Merrill C. Tenney. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1974. 281-97. idem, “On the Form, Function, and Authority of the New Testament Letters.” Scripture and Truth. Eds. D.A. Carson and John D. Woodbridge. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1983. 101-14.

Further reading

• amanuensis on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “amanuensis”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “amanuensis”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Danish

Etymology

From Latin āmanuēnsis (“secretary”), from ab- (“from, off (of)”) +‎ manus (“hand”) +‎ -ensis (“of or from (a place)”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [amanuˈɛnsis]

Noun

amanuensis c (singular definite amanuensen or amanuensissen, plural indefinite amanuenser)

1. A teacher at an institute of higher education with a time-limited position (usually three years).
2. An assistant with a scientific education, e.g. to a doctor in private practice.

Inflection

Declension of amanuensis

common gender	Singular		Plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	amanuensis	amanuensen	amanuenser	amanuenserne
genitive	amanuensis'	amanuensens	amanuensers	amanuensernes

References

• “amanuensis” in Den Danske Ordbog

Latin

Etymology

From ab- +‎ manus (“hand”) +‎ -ēnsis.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /aː.ma.nuˈen.sis/, [äːmänuˈẽːs̠ɪs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /a.ma.nuˈen.sis/, [ämänuˈɛnsis]

Noun

āmanuēnsis m (genitive āmanuēnsis); third declension

1. secretary, clerk

Usage notes

Originally used for a slave at his master's personal service 'within hand reach', performing any command. Later, it was specifically applied to intimately trusted servants (also many freedmen) acting as a personal secretary.

Declension

Third-declension noun (i-stem).

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	āmanuēnsis	āmanuēnsēs
Genitive	āmanuēnsis	āmanuēnsium
Dative	āmanuēnsī	āmanuēnsibus
Accusative	āmanuēnsem	āmanuēnsēs āmanuēnsīs
Ablative	āmanuēnse	āmanuēnsibus
Vocative	āmanuēnsis	āmanuēnsēs

Descendants

• Catalan: amanuense
• English: amanuensis
• Italian: amanuense
• Portuguese: amanuense
• Spanish: amanuense

References

• “amanuensis”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “amanuensis”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “amanuensis”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin