era

era¹ era, age

Etymology tree of era¹

inherited borrowed derived

Latin aes

Latin aera

English era

Spanish era

From the same root · era¹

Latin aēneus ← aes

Latin aerārius ← aes

Latin aerātus ← aes

Latin āereus ← aes

Latin aerūgō ← aes

Latin obaerātus ← aes

Pronunciation

• /ˈeɾa/, [ˈe.ɾa]^[1]

Forms

era f (plural eras)^[1]

Etymology

The word for a reckoning of years is borrowed from Late Latin aera (“number, figure; era”), originally the plural of Latin aes (“bronze; money; amount”), treated as a feminine singular.^[2][3][4] In Latin the sense “number” is found from the 4th century, and “era” first in Isidore of Seville.^[2][2] Vox dates the borrowing to the 12th century.^[5] Covarrubias reports Isidore's view that the era was named from the bronze coin of a tribute imposed by Augustus, and rejects it because the era began before the birth of Christ.^[6]

The same Latin word gave Catalan era, Portuguese era, French ère and Italian era.^[7][8] De Vaan derives the Latin noun from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ei-os (“bronze”).^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

Corominas dates the word to a text of 1100 and to Berceo's Vida de San Millán (1220–1250), and notes that it is found in a great many earlier charters where it may be Latin.^[2][3] Berceo dates an event to la era de seiscientos e doce “the era six hundred and twelve”.^[10] The Liber Regum (c. 1194–1211) already explains that the era is counted from Caesar Augustus: ond nos comtamos la era.^[11]

Semantic evolution

Alfonso X's scientific works distinguish the Arabic era from the Hegira, the era of Alexander and the era of Caesar.^[12] Autoridades explains that the Spanish era, or era of Caesar, began 38 years before the birth of Christ, and that Castile counted by it until the Cortes of Segovia under Juan I decided in 1383 to count by the years of Christ.^[13] The word went on meaning “date, year” after that.^[2] Autoridades also has the sense “century, a very long time”, with a line of Quevedo.^[13]

The Academy's 1843 edition adds “season, period of time”.^[14] Alemany's dictionary of 1917 has the geological sense, the first of the great epochs of the earth, and Vox dates this sense to the early 20th century.^[15][5] The DLE now adds a long historical period marked by great changes in ways of life and culture.^[16]

Timeline

• 1100 – first record.^[2]
• c. 1194–1211 – the Liber Regum says that the era is counted from Augustus.^[11]
• 1220–1250 – Berceo dates an event by the era.^[3][10]
• 1254–1260 – Alfonso X's astronomical tables name the Arabic era.^[12]
• 1383 – the Cortes of Segovia abolish counting by the Spanish era.^[13]
• c. 1495 – Nebrija glosses era de César by Latin monarchia Augusti.^[17]
• 1917 – Alemany records the geological sense.^[15]

Meanings

Noun

1. An era: a period counted from a notable event: Estos templos se construyeron en el siglo III de nuestra era..^[16][1]
2. A long historical period marked by great innovation in ways of life and culture: la era digital.^[16]
3. (geology, astronomy) Each of the great periods of geological or cosmic evolution.^[16][1]

era² threshing floor

Etymology tree of era²

inherited borrowed derived

Latin ārea

Aromanian aryi

Spanish era

English area

Italian area

From the same root · era²

Latin āreola ← ārea

Pronunciation

• /ˈeɾa/, [ˈe.ɾa]^[1]

Forms

era f (plural eras)^[1]

Etymology

The word for the threshing floor is inherited from Latin ārea (“open space; threshing floor”).^{[18][3][16][1]} Its learned doublet is área, recorded from 1600.^[18][3]

The earliest Leonese charters have eira, and that form survives in other Leonese documents.^[18] The Mozarabic form would have been aira, which Giese found in a small area of the province of Cádiz.^[18] Corominas thinks it may rather be a local change of the noun with the article.^[18] Nascentes derives the Portuguese word through an intermediate form with ⟨ai⟩.^[19] Corominas adds that the generally accepted etymon has phonetic difficulties, such as the lack of a diphthong in the Occitan form.^[18]

The same Latin word is Portuguese eira, Galician eira, Catalan era, French aire, Italian aia and Romanian arie.^[7][20] The origin of the Latin word is disputed: Varro already linked it with āreō (“to be dry”), which the OLD allows, and Wiktionary also gives a derivation from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₂rh₃- (“threshing tool”).^[21][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Corominas finds eira in a charter from Palencia of 938 and era in one from Cardeña of 950.^[18] DEMel lists eras in a San Millán cartulary under a doubtful date of 932.^[22] Berceo uses the word for the threshing floor and the harvest gathered on it.^[10]

Semantic evolution

Nebrija already has the sense “small bed of garlic or onions”, a plot in a kitchen garden.^[18][17] Autoridades describes the threshing floor as a piece of clean, well-trodden ground near the villages, sometimes paved with small pebbles.^[13] The Academy records the phrase alzar or levantar de eras, to finish gathering the grain from them in August.^[14][23] In Asturias it also means a seedbed and the box where crushed apples are pressed for cider.^[18][24] In Bolivia it is the jar in which chicha ferments, and in New Mexico a vegetable patch.^[25][26][27]

Builders' and miners' senses, a beaten floor for mixing plaster and a level place for crushing ore, are in the DLE.^[16]

Timeline

• 938 – first record, eira in a charter from Palencia.^[18]
• 950 – era in a charter from Cardeña.^[18]
• c. 1200 – the Fazienda de Ultra Mar names a threshing floor beyond the Jordan.^[11]
• c. 1495 – Nebrija glosses it area and records the garden-bed sense.^[28][18]
• 1571 – Aragonese alera, the place where a village's threshing floors are.^[18]
• 1611 – Covarrubias describes the threshing floors near the villages.^[29]
• 1884 – the Academy first derives it from Latin area.^[23]

Meanings

Noun

1. A threshing floor: a piece of clean, firm ground, sometimes paved, where grain is threshed.^[16][1]
2. A small plot for growing flowers or vegetables.^[16]
3. (construction) A beaten floor for crushing yeso, making mixtures or laying out floor tiles.^[16]
4. (mining) A level place near a mine where the ore is crushed and cleaned.^[16]

Word family

• ería
• erial
• erío
• eruela
• erar
• alera