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ArchivesRe: Cecilia
in reply to a message by noisynora
Cecilia is basically a simplified spelling of Caecilia, the proper and original Latin form.
As is mentioned in the entry for Cecilia, the name is ultimately derived from the Latin adjective caecus meaning "blind" (plus a Latin diminutive suffix, so actually the meaning of the name is more like "little blind one"):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diminutives_by_language#Latin (in English)
Names with a descriptive meaning first started out as informal nicknames, usually in order to distinguish two bearers of the same name (think of cases like Pliny the Elder vs. Pliny the Younger). Over time, some of these nicknames began to be used as legitimate given names (and ultimately, family names).
Since the name Caecilia was borne by Roman women who lived in the centuries BC, obviously the name and its etymology predate the saint (who lived in the 3rd century AD):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caecilia_gens#Members (in English)
Also, Cecilia was not the patron saint of the blind. Not sure where you got that from. She was the patron saint of music:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Cecilia (in English)
Forchta in biuonga quamon ouer mi, in bethecoda mi thuisternussi.
In ic quad: "uuie sal geuan mi fetheron also duuon, in ic fliugon sal in raston sal?"
As is mentioned in the entry for Cecilia, the name is ultimately derived from the Latin adjective caecus meaning "blind" (plus a Latin diminutive suffix, so actually the meaning of the name is more like "little blind one"):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diminutives_by_language#Latin (in English)
Names with a descriptive meaning first started out as informal nicknames, usually in order to distinguish two bearers of the same name (think of cases like Pliny the Elder vs. Pliny the Younger). Over time, some of these nicknames began to be used as legitimate given names (and ultimately, family names).
Since the name Caecilia was borne by Roman women who lived in the centuries BC, obviously the name and its etymology predate the saint (who lived in the 3rd century AD):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caecilia_gens#Members (in English)
Also, Cecilia was not the patron saint of the blind. Not sure where you got that from. She was the patron saint of music:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Cecilia (in English)
In ic quad: "uuie sal geuan mi fetheron also duuon, in ic fliugon sal in raston sal?"
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Replies
Well whose the one who had the eyeballs on the plate in all the drawings? Or was it eyeballs..? I think. Maybe I got confused bc the name means blind, so...? Idk.
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I suspect Lucy of Syracuse is the saint depicted in the drawings you remember. She is indeed represented in art holding a plate with eyes on it. The following link shows one such painting, and further down on the page “eyes on a dish” is listed as part of her symbolism.
https://catholicsaints.info/saint-lucy-of-syracuse/
Also, it appears that Saint Lucy is one of several patron saints of the blind. Two of the other saints mentioned by the other posters in this thread, Saint Dunstan and Saint Odilia, are also on the list. Here is the link:
https://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-blind-people/
https://catholicsaints.info/saint-lucy-of-syracuse/
Also, it appears that Saint Lucy is one of several patron saints of the blind. Two of the other saints mentioned by the other posters in this thread, Saint Dunstan and Saint Odilia, are also on the list. Here is the link:
https://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-blind-people/
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Ahh, ok thank you!
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