Joke & Jocularity

@gemini 2025-05-25 What is the etymology of the word "jocularity"? Is there a connection with the word "joke", and if so which word was first?

The word "jocularity" has its roots in Latin. It derives from the Latin word iocularis, meaning "funny, comic," which in turn comes from ioculus, a diminutive of iocus, meaning "joke, jest, sport, pastime."

There is indeed a strong connection with the word "joke." Both "jocularity" (and its related adjective "jocular") and "joke" ultimately stem from this common Latin root: iocus.

As for which word came first, "joke" (as a noun) first appeared in English around the 1660s, directly from the Latin iocus. "Jocular" (the adjective) appeared earlier, in the 1620s, and "jocularity" (the noun) emerged in the mid-1600s, with OED's earliest evidence from 1646. Therefore, while "joke" as a direct English noun is slightly later, the root concepts of "jocular" and "jocularity" were present in English earlier through their Latin derivations. Essentially, the underlying Latin root iocus predates both modern English words.