Laudator Temporis Acti

Cato, On Agriculture 139 (tr. W.D. Hooper and H.B. Ash):

The following is the Roman formula to be observed in thinning a grove: A pig is to be sacrificed, and the following prayer uttered: "Whether thou be god or goddess to whom this grove is dedicated, as it is thy right to receive a sacrifice of a pig for the thinning of this sacred grove, and to this intent, whether I or one at my bidding do it, may it be rightly done. To this end, in offering this pig to thee I humbly beg that thou wilt be gracious and merciful to me, to my house and household, and to my children. Wilt thou deign to receive this pig which I offer thee to this end."

Lucum conlucare Romano more sic oportet. Porco piaculo facto, sic verba concipito: "Si deus, si dea es, quoium illud sacrum est, uti tibi ius est porco piaculo facere illiusce sacri coercendi ergo harumque rerum ergo, sive ego sive quis iussu meo fecerit, uti id recte factum siet, eius rei ergo te hoc porco piaculo inmolando bonas preces precor, uti sies volens propitius mihi domo familiaeque meae liberisque meis; harumce rerum ergo macte hoc porco piaculo inmolando esto."

Lewis & Short, s.v. colluco:

col-lūco (conl- ), āre, v. a. [lux],

I. to make light, to clear or thin a forest, etc.: collucare est succisis arboribus locum luce implere, Fest. s.v. sublucare, p. 348, 18 Müll. (explained in a different manner by Paul. ex Fest. p. 37, 12 ib.): lucum, Cato, R.R. 139: arborem, Col. 2, 21, 3.

The different explanation by Paul. ex Fest. p. 37, 12 Müll. is conlucare dicebant cum profanae silvae rami deciderentur officientes lumini. The paraphrase of Cato by Pliny, Natural History 17.267 (idem arbores religiosas lucosque succidi permisit sacrificio prius facto, cuius rationem precationemque eodem volumine tradidit), seems to support the meaning "cut down trees" rather than "prune branches".

Lewis & Short, s.v. interluco:

inter-lūco , āre, v. a. [lux],

I. to let the light through a tree by clearing it of its useless branches; to lop or thin a tree (Plinian): interlucata densitate ramorum, Plin. 17, 23, 35, § 214: arbores, id. 17, 12, 19, § 94.

Lewis & Short, s.v. subluco:

sub-lūco , āre, 1, v. a. [lux],

I. to trim, cut away, thin out the branches of a tree, to admit light: sublucare arbores est ramos earum supputare, et veluti subtus lucem mittere, Fest. p. 348 Müll.: arbor ... nisi a domino sublucari non potest, isque conveniendus est ut eam sublucet, Paul. Sent. 5, 6, 13; cf. colluco.

On the etymology of these verbs, see Ernout and Meillet, Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine (Paris: C. Klincksieck, 1951), p. 368:

De lūcus a dû exister aussi un dénominatif *lūcō, -ās (à moins que *lūcō ne soit un intensif-duratif en -ā-, du type dūcō, -ās, dont lūcus serait le substantif verbal?) qui figure dans les composés collūcāre, interlūcāre, sublūcāre, termes techniques de la langue des forestiers, dont le sens est "tailler les arbres, éclaircir (un bois)". L'étymologie est indiquée par les textes: conlucare dicebant cum profanae siluae rami deciderentur officientes lumini, P.F. 33, 21; sublucare arbores est ramos earum supputare, et ueluti subtus lucem mittere; conlucare autem, succisis arboribus lucum (locum, Lindsay) implere luce, Fest. 474, 28; cf. l'emploi de interlūcāre dans Pline 17, 94....Le mot italique *loukos (osq. lúvkei "in lūcō") signifiait étymologiquement "clairière"; on en a le correspondant exact dans v. angl. léah "prairie", v.h.a. lōh "clairière avec des arbustes"; lit. laūkas "champ" ("espace libre", par opposition à la "maison" avec son enclos), skr. lokáḥ, "espace libre" et ulokáḥ, sans doute simplification du composé *uru-lokaḥ "large espace". Ce mot indo-européen désignait l'espace libre et clair, par opposition à ce qui est boisé — le bois, le couvert, étant le grand obstacle à l'activité de l'homme.

Thanks to Eric Thomson for sending me the excerpt from Ernout and Meillet. Eric also compares German Lichtung ("clearing, glade" from Licht, "light").

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