'literatus' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'litteratus', where 'littera' meant 'letter' or 'writing'.

'literatus' came into English from Latin/Neo-Latin use (via scholarly and antiquarian contexts); the modern English usage developed from the Latin term 'litteratus' and the Italian/Latin plural 'literati' used to refer to learned people.

Initially, it meant 'lettered' or 'educated' (literally 'possessing letters'), and over time it has retained the general sense of an educated person or literary intellectual in English.