Antiquitary

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person who studies, collects or has a strong interest in old objects and relics from ancient times ; relating to or concerned with the study of ancient artifacts and past eras
2. An enthusiast of ancient relics and historical objects who gathers or researches them ; of or pertaining to old, ancient things and their study
3. Someone devoted to studying or amassing relics from earlier ages ; characterizing matters connected with antiquities and the remote past

Etymology: Antiquitary is a plain formation: the noun "antiquity" with the suffix "-ary," which turns it into a word for a person connected with the thing named. An antiquitary is therefore someone devoted to antiquity, that is, to the study or collecting of ancient and old things. The pattern is the same as in "dictionary," "library," or "military," where "-ary" marks a person or thing associated with a base noun. The base word reaches English through Old French "antiquité" from Latin "antiquitas," meaning "old times" or "ancient days," itself built on "antiquus," "old." Latin "antiquus" is also the source of "antique," so the two words are close relatives that took slightly different routes into English. "Antiquity" was the older of the pair for the abstract sense of ancient times, while "antiquary" points to the scholar or collector who studies that past.

Synonyms: antiquary, antiquarian