Where does “Magnificat” come from?
Magnificat comes from Latin magnificat, the third-person singular present tense of magnifico, meaning to make great, derived from magnificus (great) and -ficens (making), ultimately from Latin facio (to make, to do) and Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁- (to place or put).
Magnificat (English): The liturgical canticle of the Virgin Mary, sung in Christian churches; taken from her reported words upon the occasion of her Visitation to her cousin Elizabeth
Definitions
- The liturgical canticle of the Virgin Mary, sung in Christian churches; taken from her reported words upon the occasion of her Visitation to her cousin Elizabeth
Ancestry of “Magnificat”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | magnificat | third-person singular present active indicative... |
| 2 | Latin | magnifico | I prize, esteem highly; I praise, glorify, or... |
| 3 | Latin | magnificus | great, noble, distinguished, eminent, august;... |
| 4 | Latin | magnus | large, big; great; important |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | meǵh₂- | big, great; great; big, stour, great |