feliz

Forms

feliz m or f (masculine and feminine plural felices)^[1] The Italianate form felice was used in the 16th and 17th centuries, by Guevara, Cervantes and in the Americas.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin fēlīx (“fruitful; fortunate, happy”), a learned word.^[2][5][6][1] Berceo uses it three times, but Corominas knows few other medieval examples: it is missing from Nebrija and Alcalá, Palencia translates the Latin adjective by dichoso and bienaventurado, and as late as 1570 C. de las Casas renders Italian felice the same way.^[2] Guevara already uses the Italianate form, and Autoridades has many examples of the word from Fray Luis de León on.^[2]

Portuguese feliz and Catalan feliç are also plainly learned in their sound, and the word is probably learned in the other western Romance languages too.^[2] Catalan took the adjective late: its first record is from 1647, while the noun felicitat is already in Bernat Metge in 1399.^[7] Only Romanian ferice continues the Latin word by inheritance.^[8]

The Latin adjective goes back to Proto-Italic *fēlwī- (“suckling”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-l(u)-i-, a derivative of the root of “to suckle”.^[9][1] Its sense developed from “suckling, with young” to “fruitful”, the sense it still has of fruit-bearing trees, and then to “fortunate, happy”.^[9][10] Its relatives include fīlius (“son”) and Ancient Greek θηλή (thēlḗ, “nipple”).^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The BDELC dates it 1220–1250, from Berceo.^[5][2] In his Vida de Santo Domingo de Silos (c. 1236): „De atal castellero feliz es el castiello” “with such a keeper the castle is happy”, and in the Duelo de la Virgen: „Felices son las madres, e de buena ventura” “happy and fortunate are the mothers”.^[11][12] The CDH's earliest hit, „Feliz el que espera” “happy is he who waits”, is in the Fazienda de Ultra Mar (c. 1200), known from a 13th-century copy.^[11] Older records of Feliz in charters are the personal name.^[13][11]

Semantic evolution

Alfonso X's General estoria uses it for what brings happiness, in la feliz Arauia, Arabia Felix.^[14] Covarrubias (1611) explains it as dichoso and lists infeliz and infelicidad beside it.^[15] Autoridades (1732) defines it as “fortunate, blessed, prosperous”, with examples from Fray Luis de León, and the Academy kept a short “fortunate” until 1869.^[16][17][18]

The 1884 edition introduced the four senses the DLE still gives: having happiness, causing it, apt (of a thought or phrase), and turning out well.^[19][6] Placed before the noun it expresses good wishes: feliz cumpleaños, feliz Navidad.^[20] The derivative felicitar first meant “to make happy”.^[2] Autoridades considered its use for “to congratulate” an improper Gallicism.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1200 – the Fazienda de Ultra Mar (in a 13th-century copy) has „Feliz el que espera”.^[11]
• 1220–1250 – Berceo uses the word three times.^[5][2]
• 1272–1275 – Alfonso X's General estoria names la feliz Arauia.^[14]
• 1438 – first record of felicidad.^[5]
• 2nd quarter of the 15th century – first record of infeliz.^[5]
• 1569 – the form felice in Chile, the first record from the Americas.^[4]
• 1611 – Covarrubias explains it as dichoso.^[15]
• early 17th century – first record of felicitar.^[5]
• 1732 – Autoridades quotes Fray Luis de León.^[16]
• 1884 – the Academy gives the etymology and the four modern senses.^[19]

Meanings

Adjective

1. happy, feeling or enjoying happiness; with estar, pleased, glad: Hoy estoy feliz.^[6][1]
2. Causing or bringing happiness: unos años felices.^[6][21]
3. (of an idea, phrase or remark) Apt, well chosen, effective.^[6][21]
4. Turning out well, successful.^[6]

Word family

• felicidad
• felicitar
• infeliz
• felizmente

Related words

• Félix
• Latin fēlīx
• Catalan feliç
• Portuguese feliz

Usage notes

The plural is felices.^[1] No hacer feliz algo a alguien is colloquial for “not to appeal to someone”.^[6][21]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 2, 879
3. ^ Cejador y Frauca, Julio (1905–1906), La lengua de Cervantes: gramática y diccionario de la lengua castellana en El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha, 2 vols., Madrid: Jaime Ratés, p. 524
4. ^ a b 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. felice
5. ^ a b c d e f Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. feliz
6. ^ 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. feliz
7. ^ Coromines, Joan (1980–2001), Diccionari etimològic i complementari de la llengua catalana, 10 vols., Barcelona: Curial / La Caixa (online ed., Institut d'Estudis Catalans 2024), p. 3, 936
8. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
9. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
10. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
11. ^ a b c d Real Academia Española (2013–), Corpus del Diccionario histórico de la lengua española (CDH), version 3.1, https://apps.rae.es/CNDHE, p. s.v. feliz
12. ^ Lanchetas, Rufino (1900), Gramática y vocabulario de las obras de Gonzalo de Berceo, Madrid: Sucesores de Rivadeneyra, p. 365
13. ^ Diccionario del Español Medieval electrónico (DEMel), data publication 2026 (CC BY-SA), Universität Rostock, p. s.v. feliz
14. ^ a b 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. feliz
15. ^ a b Covarrubias Orozco, Sebastián de (1611), Tesoro de la lengua castellana o española, Madrid: Luis Sánchez (Biblioteca Wordkers transcription, CC BY 4.0), p. 837
16. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. 3, 733
17. ^ Real Academia Española (1817), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 5th ed., Madrid: Imprenta Real, p. 413
18. ^ Real Academia Española (1869), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 11th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de Don Manuel Rivadeneyra, p. 356
19. ^ 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. 491
20. ^ Battaner Arias, Paz (dir.) (2017), Diccionario general de la lengua española VOX, Barcelona: Larousse Editorial, p. s.v. feliz
21. ^ a b c Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. feliz