arcesso

Latin

Alternative forms

• accersō

Etymology

Disputed. The linguist José L. García Ramón explains the term as from the root Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- and argues that it originally meant "to run, go for," before shifting to mean "to seek, search for," before culminating in "to summon, send for." Nussbaum proposes that accersō likely derives from a *-seti desiderative of the root *ḱers-. The term has also been connected with the root *h₁erkʷ-, although De Vaan rejects this as the expect Latin form would be *arquessō. It may have also had some semantic influence from acciō.

It is unclear whether accersō or arcessō is the original form. The linguist A. S. Wilkins supports the notion that accersō is the older form, arguing that the change of -rs- into -ss- is well-attested, whereas there is limited evidence for the opposite development. Consequently, it is more in-line with known Latin sound laws for accersō to become arcessō than for the reverse. García Ramón also favors the interpretation that accersō is the older thus, as it is the more unusual and more difficult form, and thus more likely to have been changed into arcessō. In addition to the aforementioned considerations, De Vaan notes that the perfect form arcessīvī is rarely attested prior to Cicero. Consequently, De Vaan suggests that the form arcessō may have been slowly coming to replace the form accersō.

This proposal is rejected by other linguists, such as James Poultney, who argues that arcessō is likely the older form and accersō emerged according to a shift of -r- to the second syllable. Poultney proposes that—in some Indo-European languages—when a term with -r- is replaced by a term with -r- in a following position, the first -r- is removed and a second -r- is added to a syllable that previously lacked the sound. For instance, Κέκροψ (Kékrops), possibly from *Κέρκοψ (*Kérkops). According to this same sound role, the form arcessō may have shifted into accersō. The ac- in accersō, according to Walde-Hofmann, may have been influenced by forms such as accēdō and acciō.

Another, older proposal, is that it may derive from a verb suffixed with third conjugation -iō verb suffixed with -essō, akin to facessō from faciō or lacessō from laciō. One proposal holds that the term derives from *arfacessō, although the philologist Edwin Fay considers a shift from the verb faciō (“to make”) to a verb with a causative meaning unlikely. Moreover, Fay argues that it is generally rare throughout Latin for the recomposition of a compound verb to leave little trace of the original form. De Vaan considers this explanation to be unlikely, as there is no evidence for the presence of *-fa- in the pre-form. Alternatively, the linguist Eduard Rudolf Thurneysen proposes a derivation from *arvocessō. Brugmann opposes the latter option due to phonological and semantic difficulties. However, Fay suggests that they may be resolvable if the term derives from *arucessō, from *arvocassō. Alternatively, it may trace itself back to *acciessō, from *adciō, itself from ciō.

Fay compares the term to Sanskrit कर्षति (kárṣati). Another linguist, Nazari, also supports this comparison. Nazari argues that a root *(s)kers- may have produced the Sanskrit forms and a Latin term *cerssō, whence *arcersō. Afterwards. according to Fay, the form *arcersō may have shifted to *accessō via the shift of the Latin consonant cluster -rs- into -s- (see prōrsus, prōsus). Fay proposes that accersō may have emerged as part of a conscious and intentionally archaicizing effort to restore the *-rs- cluster in the term. According to Fay, this same archaicizing effort resulted in confusion regarding the proper pronunciation of the term, which allowed for a blend of accersō and *accessō that produced arcessō.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [arˈkɛs.sɔ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [arˈt͡ʃɛs.so]

Verb

arcessō (present infinitive arcessere, perfect active arcessīvī, supine arcessītum); third conjugation

1. to send for, call, invite, summon, fetch

   Synonyms: prōvocō, advocō, ēvocō, invocō, invītō, acciō, citō, inclāmō, exciō

   • 55 BCE, Cicero, De Oratore 2.256:

     etenim cavendum est, ne arcessitum dictum putetur

     We must beware, lest our statement be seen as forced

2. to summon or arraign someone before a court of justice; accuse, inform against

   Synonyms: accūsō, condemnō, crīminor, compellō, obloquor, corripiō, arripiō, pulsō, incūsō, arguō

Usage notes

The linguist José L. García Ramón argues that the possible original meanings of "to seek" and "to cause to come" are present in certain quotes:

• c. 254 BCE – 184 BCE, Plautus, The Braggart Soldier 1296:

  nam ego hanc accerso Philocomasium

  • Translation by José L. García Ramón

    I am seeking Philocomasius

• c. 190 BCE – 185 BCE, Plautus, Amphitryon 949-951:

  euocate huc Sosiam; gubernatorem qui in mea naui fuit Blepharonem arcessat qui nobiscum prandeat.

  • Translation by Wolfgang de Melo

    Call Sosia out here. He is to fetch our pilot Blepharo, who was on my ship, so that he can have lunch with us.

Conjugation

   Conjugation of arcessō (third conjugation)

indicative		singular						plural
		first		second		third		first		second		third
active	present	arcessō		arcessis		arcessit		arcessimus		arcessitis		arcessunt
	imperfect	arcessēbam		arcessēbās		arcessēbat		arcessēbāmus		arcessēbātis		arcessēbant
	future	arcessam		arcessēs		arcesset		arcessēmus		arcessētis		arcessent
	perfect	arcessīvī		arcessīvistī		arcessīvit		arcessīvimus		arcessīvistis		arcessīvērunt, arcessīvēre
	pluperfect	arcessīveram		arcessīverās		arcessīverat		arcessīverāmus		arcessīverātis		arcessīverant
	future perfect	arcessīverō		arcessīveris		arcessīverit		arcessīverimus		arcessīveritis		arcessīverint
passive	present	arcessor		arcesseris, arcessere		arcessitur		arcessimur		arcessiminī		arcessuntur
	imperfect	arcessēbar		arcessēbāris, arcessēbāre		arcessēbātur		arcessēbāmur		arcessēbāminī		arcessēbantur
	future	arcessar		arcessēris, arcessēre		arcessētur		arcessēmur		arcessēminī		arcessentur
	perfect	arcessītus + present active indicative of sum
	pluperfect	arcessītus + imperfect active indicative of sum
	future perfect	arcessītus + future active indicative of sum
subjunctive		singular						plural
		first		second		third		first		second		third
active	present	arcessam		arcessās		arcessat		arcessāmus		arcessātis		arcessant
	imperfect	arcesserem		arcesserēs		arcesseret		arcesserēmus		arcesserētis		arcesserent
	perfect	arcessīverim		arcessīverīs		arcessīverit		arcessīverīmus		arcessīverītis		arcessīverint
	pluperfect	arcessīvissem		arcessīvissēs		arcessīvisset		arcessīvissēmus		arcessīvissētis		arcessīvissent
passive	present	arcessar		arcessāris, arcessāre		arcessātur		arcessāmur		arcessāminī		arcessantur
	imperfect	arcesserer		arcesserēris, arcesserēre		arcesserētur		arcesserēmur		arcesserēminī		arcesserentur
	perfect	arcessītus + present active subjunctive of sum
	pluperfect	arcessītus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum
imperative		singular						plural
		first		second		third		first		second		third
active	present	—		arcesse		—		—		arcessite		—
	future	—		arcessitō		arcessitō		—		arcessitōte		arcessuntō
passive	present	—		arcessere		—		—		arcessiminī		—
	future	—		arcessitor		arcessitor		—		—		arcessuntor
non-finite forms		infinitive						participle
		active			passive			active			passive
present		arcessere			arcessī			arcessēns			—
future		arcessītūrum esse			arcessītum īrī			arcessītūrus			arcessendus, arcessundus
perfect		arcessīvisse			arcessītum esse			—			arcessītus
future perfect		—			arcessītum fore			—			—
perfect potential		arcessītūrum fuisse			—			—			—
verbal nouns		gerund								supine
		genitive		dative		accusative		ablative		accusative		ablative
		arcessendī		arcessendō		arcessendum		arcessendō		arcessītum		arcessītū

References

• “arcesso”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “arcesso”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “arcesso”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • a far-fetched joke: arcessitum dictum (De Or. 2. 63. 256)
    
  • to summon auxiliary troops: auxilia arcessere
    
• Walde, Alois; Hofmann, Johann Baptist (1938), “arcessō, accersō”, in Lateinisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), 3rd edition, volume 1, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, page 63
• James W. Poultney (1972), “Assimilatory and Dissimilatory Gain and Loss of r”, in The American Journal of Philology‎, volume 93, number 1, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 198–214
• Edwin W. Fay (1906), “Latin Word-Studies”, in Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association‎, volume 37, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 5–24
• A. S. Wilkins (2012), John Eyton Bickersteth Mayor, William Aldis Wright, William George Clark, editor, On Arcesso and Accerso (Cambridge Library Collection - Classics)‎, volume 6, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, pages 278–285
• J. D. Sadler (1970), “Metathesis”, in The Classical Journal‎, volume 65, number 6, →ISSN, page 270
• José L. García Ramón (2012), “From run to desire: Lat. auere ‘desire, be eager, long (for)’ and *h2eu1- ‘run (to/for)’, Lat. accersere ‘go forth’, ‘fetch’ and Toch. B ñäsk- ‘desire’, Ved. avis-yú ‘greedy’”, in Per Roberto Gusmani. Linguistica storica e teorica‎, numbers 978-88-8420-727-2, →DOI, pages 151–166
• De Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 51