compostura

Forms

compostura f (plural composturas)^[1] Old Spanish often wrote conpostura.^[1][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old Spanish compostura, inherited from Latin compositūra (“a fitting together; a structure”).^[3][1][4] Latin also had the contracted form compostūra, found in Cato.^[5][6] The Latin noun is formed from compōnō (“to put together”) with the suffix -ūra.^[5] The verb is made of con- and pōnō (“to put”), which gave poner.^[1][7]

Corominas lists the word among the derivatives of componer, with a first record in 1219.^[7][8] García de Diego places it under compuesto.^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

Corominas's first record is a charter of 1219 in Menéndez Pidal's Documentos lingüísticos.^[7][8] The CDH has an earlier hit in the Fazienda de Ultra Mar (about 1200, in a 13th-century copy), in a passage on building a house.^[10] The first sense that is clear from the context is “settlement, agreement”: the Fuero real (1251–1255) forbids making ninguna auenencia nin nenguna conpostura “any arrangement or settlement” in a lawsuit.^[10]

Semantic evolution

In Alfonso X's works the word also means the structure of something made of parts and the adornment of a person, as in Judith's preparations in the General estoria.^[11] The Estoria de España speaks of a carta de conpostura de falssedad, a forged document, and composturas e afeites are cosmetics in the Historia de la doncella Teodor (known from a 16th-century copy).^[10]

Autoridades defined it first as the making or structure of a whole, then as the repair of something worn or damaged (a house, a dress, shoes), and as a little-used word for a musical composition.^[12] The Academy's dictionary of 1817 lists among its senses “agreement” and “modesty, restraint”, and that of 1884 adds the mixture used to adulterate a product.^[13][14] Moliner also records the dressing of food with oil, vinegar and salt.^[15] In Argentina and Uruguay the word was used for preparing fighting cocks and horses, and in Honduras it names a ritual offering to Mother Earth.^[16][17]

Timeline

• c. 1200 – the Fazienda de Ultra Mar, in a 13th-century copy.^[10][2]
• 1219 – a charter, the first record for Corominas.^[7][8]
• 1251–1255 – the Fuero real uses it for a settlement in a lawsuit.^[10]
• 1272–1275 – the General estoria uses it for the structure of things.^[11]
• 1280 – the General estoria uses it for adornment.^[11]
• 1581 – first record in the Americas, in Lima.^[18]
• 1726–1739 – Autoridades gives the senses “structure”, “repair” and “musical composition”.^[12]
• 1817 – the Academy lists “agreement” and “modesty, restraint”.^[13]
• 1884 – the Academy adds the sense “adulterating mixture” and gives the etymology.^[14]

Meanings

Noun

1. The construction or make-up of a whole made of several parts.^[3][15]
2. repair of something broken, damaged or out of order: Pagó poco por la compostura del paraguas.^[3][15]
3. Neatness, grooming or adornment of a person or thing.^[3][15]
4. A mixture used to adulterate or fake a product.^[3]
5. An agreement or settlement.^[3][15]
6. composure: modesty, restraint and circumspection in behaviour: Aguantó los insultos sin perder la compostura.^[3][15][1]
7. (cooking) Dressing for food, especially of oil, vinegar and salt.^[15]
8. (Argentina, Uruguay) The preparing of fighting cocks or horses.^[16]
9. (Honduras) A ritual offering to Mother Earth.^[17]

Related words

• componer
• composición
• compuesto
• Latin compositūra

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Diccionario del Español Medieval electrónico (DEMel), data publication 2026 (CC BY-SA), Universität Rostock, p. s.v. compostura
3. ^ a b c d e f g Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. compostura
4. ^ Segura Munguía, Santiago (2001), Nuevo diccionario etimológico latín-español y de las voces derivadas, Bilbao: Universidad de Deusto, p. 143
5. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b c d Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 4, 607
8. ^ a b c Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. poner
9. ^ García de Diego, Vicente (1985), Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico, 2nd ed., Madrid: Espasa-Calpe (1st ed. 1954), p. s.v. compositus
10. ^ a b c d e Real Academia Española (2013–), Corpus del Diccionario histórico de la lengua española (CDH), version 3.1, https://apps.rae.es/CNDHE, p. s.v. compostura
11. ^ a b c Kasten, Lloyd A.; Nitti, John J.; Gago Jover, Francisco (2002–), Diccionario de la prosa castellana del Rey Alfonso X, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies (electronic edition 2024), p. s.v. compostura
12. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. 2, 457
13. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1817), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 5th ed., Madrid: Imprenta Real, p. 219
14. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1884), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 12th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de D. Gregorio Hernando (the first Academy edition with etymologies), p. 267
15. ^ a b c d e f g Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. compostura
16. ^ a b Malaret, Augusto (1946), Diccionario de americanismos, 3rd ed., Buenos Aires: Emecé, p. 251
17. ^ a b Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2010), Diccionario de americanismos, Lima: Santillana; online at https://www.asale.org/damer, p. s.v. compostura
18. ^ Boyd-Bowman, Peter (2003), Léxico hispanoamericano 1493–1993, ed. Ray Harris-Northall and John J. Nitti, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, p. s.v. compostura