ab oculis

Latin

Alternative forms

• aboculis, abocellus, abocellis, avocellus (Medieval Latin)

Etymology

Literally, “away from the eyes”. Possibly a calque of Gaulish exsops.

Adjective

ab oculīs (indeclinable) (Late Latin)

1. blind
   • 4th c. CE, Actus Vercellenses:

     […] iacentibus autem nobis solae illae viduae stabant, quae erant ab oculis.

     But when we were lying down, those widows, who were blind, stood alone.

Descendants

• Franco-Provençal: avogllo
• Old French: avogle, aveule
  • Middle French: aveugle
    • French: aveugle
      • Haitian Creole: avèg
    • Norman: aveugl'ye (Jèrriais)
  • Picard: aveûle, aveûgue
  • Walloon: aveule

References

• abocellus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• aboculus in Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften (1967– ) Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch, Munich: C.H. Beck
• Niermeyer, Jan Frederik (1976) “abocellus”, in Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden, Boston: E. J. Brill, page 5/2
• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “ab oculis”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volumes 24: Refonte A–Aorte, pages 35–37