expeditio

Expeditio is a Latin noun meaning an expedition or military campaign; it denotes an organized military operation or an organized journey undertaken for a specific purpose, such as combat, reconnaissance, or diplomacy. In classical Latin, expeditio often referred to campaigns conducted by a commander against a province or enemy territory, rather than a simple travel venture.

Etymology and form: Expeditio is a feminine noun of the third declension, derived from the verb expeditus or expedere, meaning to set forth, dispatch, or undertake. The term is the source of the English expedition and of many Romance-language cognates such as expedición in Spanish, expédition in French, spedizione in Italian, and expedição in Portuguese.

Modern usage: In scholarly Latin, expeditio remains a standard label for historical campaigns in antiquity and the Middle Ages. In English-language historiography the modern form expedition is used for most contexts, but expeditio and its descendants appear in editions of Latin texts, in summaries of ancient campaigns, and in some institutional or ceremonial names.