English
literati
Literati comes from Latin līterātī, and goes back to littera ‘letter’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElitteraas lītera‘letter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElīterātī
- Englishearliest quotation 1748literati
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElitteraas lītera‘letter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElīterātī
- Englishearliest quotation 1748literati
Earliest quotation: 1748, Tobias George Smollett, The Adventures of Roderick Random: “First, to Counsellor Fitzclabber, who, he told me, was…”
Linked words
through Latin littera ‘letter’
Today it means
noun Well-educated, erudite, literary people; intellectuals who are interested in literature.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin littera / literati