In its earliest use, rapture meant “an abduction,” especially the forcible kidnaping of a woman.
It was formed, in analogy with “capture,” from rapt, at a time when rapt meant “abducted.”
The Latin source was rapio, to snatch, seize, which became rape in English, and the Latin participle raptus, seized, was shortened to rapt.
The latter word, however, acquired a theological usage; it was applied to such personages as Elijah, Elisha, Enoch, and others who were said to have been rapt, that is, snatched, into heaven. From this theological use it acquired further extension into the senses now current, “carried into realms of emotion or deep thought.”
The course of rapture was similar, from “abduction” to “transportation into heaven,” hence “mental or emotional transport.”
Related Posts
-
Where does the expression “Dog Latin” come from and What does Dog Latin mean?
Properly, "Dog Latin" is just very bad Latin, a mongrel Latin, whence the name, composed of a mixture of Latin and English. But in our own childhood, what we called dog Latin was…
-
What Is the Difference Between Latin America and South America and How Many People Live In Latin America?
South America is not the same as Latin America. Latin America refers more to culture than geography. Latin America usually means South America as well as Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, which…
-
Where does the word “camera” come from and What does camera obscura mean in Latin?
So long ago that no one can say when, it was discovered that if one were in a room shuttered so as to be quite dark, except for the light entering a small…
-
Where does the word “money” (mint) come from and What does money mean in Latin?
According to legend, during a war when the Romans were hard pressed for the means to carry on their campaign they appealed to the goddess Juno for aid. They were told that their…
-
Where does the word “Ultimatum” come from and What does Ultimatum mean in Latin?
Diplomatic negotiations between countries are traditionally carried on with the utmost of politeness and in courteous language. When, however, an impasse is reached, the "mailed fist in a velvet glove" is extended, by…
-
Where does the word “Taciturn” come from and What does Taciturn mean in Latin?
The word taciturn has nothing to do with any other kind of a turn, but comes to us almost unchanged from the Latin taciturnus, "silent," through tacitus, the past participle of tacere, "to…
