132. - Natura Naturans and Natura Naturata

Summary

The terms “Natura naturans” and “Natura naturata” have a long history. The terminology goes back to at least the thirteenth century, and is thought to have originated in Latin translations of Averroes. Once introduced, it was found widely in the philosophical literature. Literally “naturans” is the present active participle of “naturare,” the verbal form of the noun “natura,” and “naturata” is the past participle of the same verbal form. “Natura naturans” is literally “naturing nature” while “Natura naturata” is “natured nature.” Since it isn’t evident what exactly the verbal form of “nature” could mean, these terms are admittedly somewhat paradoxical. Neither Lewis and Short’s Latin Dictionary nor the Oxford Latin Dictionary list the verbal form of “natura,” though the Oxford English Dictionary defines the corresponding English verb as “to give (a created thing …) a particular nature.” The verbal form of “nature” in English is currently obsolete, but preserved in the verb “to denature,” as in to denature alcohol. In his Lexicon philosophicum (1613), Rodolphus Goclenius explains the verb “naturare” as follows: “To nature [naturare] is a barbarism for to give, impart, conserve and preserve nature.