próximo

Forms

próximo (feminine próxima, masculine plural próximos, feminine plural próximas)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin proximus (“nearest, next”), a learned word.^[2][3][1] The same Latin word gave the popular prójimo “neighbour, fellow man”, and Corominas treats the two as variants of one word.^[2][4][5] Corominas dates the word to 1220–1250, while VOX calls it a 17th-century borrowing.^[2][6] Autoridades notes that in the noun sense “neighbour”, the sense later kept by the doublet, the ⟨x⟩ was pronounced like ⟨j⟩.^[7]

The Latin adjective is the superlative that goes with prope (“near”) and its comparative propior (“nearer”).^[8][9] De Vaan explains its ⟨x⟩ from an older /ps/, an unusual sequence that was replaced by /ks/, and follows Dunkel in deriving the adverb from Proto-Indo-European *própro (“on and on, ever further”), an iterative preverb.^[8] Wiktionary instead reconstructs *prokʷism̥mos, from *prokʷe.^[1]

The Latin word survives in Italian prossimo, Portuguese próximo, Old French prueisme and Old Occitan proisme, and the REW also cites a derivative Old Spanish prosmano “close relative”.^[10]

Semantic evolution

Autoridades records the word chiefly as a masculine noun: any creature capable of eternal bliss, angels and all people including unbelievers, but not devils or the damned.^[7] It also notes a jocular use for a donkey, and the phrase el hombre no es próximo from the card game of hombre, meaning that the player holding the stake is not to be helped.^[7] The Academy's dictionaries define the adjective as “immediate, near or close”, and the 1899 edition as “that is a short distance away”, with the theological ocasión próxima “proximate occasion (of sin)”.^[11][12] The adverbial phrase de próximo meant “at present” in the 19th century, and is now rare for “soon”.^[13][3]

Today the adjective means near in space or time and, of what follows, “next”.^[3][14] In letters and documents from the Americas, the formula año próximo pasado “the year just past” is found from 1536.^[15] DAMER records próximo pasado for an immediately preceding date in Mexico, Bolivia and Uruguay.^[16]

Timeline

• 1200–1250 – the Fazienda de Ultra Mar has the form proximo.^[17]
• 1220–1250 – Corominas's date of first record.^[2][18]
• c. 1220–1230 – the spelling proximo in the Becerro of Benevívere.^[17]
• 1528 – the first record from the Americas, in Nicaragua.^[15]
• 1607 – the derivative proximidad is first recorded.^[2]
• 1726–1739 – Autoridades describes the noun “neighbour” and its pronunciation with ⟨j⟩.^[7]
• 1770 – first record of aproximar and aproximación.^[2]
• 1884 – the Academy gives the etymology from Latin proximus.^[13]
• 19th century – the feminine prójima is first recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. near, close in space or time: La estación está próxima al hotel.^[3][14][1]
2. next, immediately following; also used as a noun: Bajamos en la próxima parada.^[3][1]
3. Forthcoming, upcoming.^[1]

Word family

• próximamente
• proximidad
• aproximar

Related words

• prójimo
• proximal
• propincuo
• Latin proximus
• Latin prope

Usage notes

Hasta la próxima “until next time” is a common farewell, and Próximo Oriente names the Near East.^[1] De próximo “soon” is now rare.^[3] Mexico, Bolivia and Uruguay use el mes próximo pasado for “last month”.^[16]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. próximo
3. ^ a b c d e f 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. próximo
4. ^ Bénaben, Michel (2000), Dictionnaire étymologique de l'espagnol, Paris: Ellipses, p. s.v. próximo
5. ^ García de Diego, Vicente (1985), Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico, 2nd ed., Madrid: Espasa-Calpe (1st ed. 1954), p. s.v. proximus
6. ^ Battaner Arias, Paz (dir.) (2017), Diccionario general de la lengua española VOX, Barcelona: Larousse Editorial, p. s.v. próximo
7. ^ a b c d Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. s.v. próximo
8. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
9. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
11. ^ Real Academia Española (1869), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 11th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de Don Manuel Rivadeneyra, p. 640
12. ^ Real Academia Española (1899), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 13th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de los Sres. Hernando y Compañía, p. 820
13. ^ 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. 875
14. ^ a b Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. próximo
15. ^ 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. próximo
16. ^ 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. próximo
17. ^ a b Diccionario del Español Medieval electrónico (DEMel), data publication 2026 (CC BY-SA), Universität Rostock, p. s.v. próximo
18. ^ Segura Munguía, Santiago (2014), Lexicón etimológico y semántico del latín y de las voces actuales que proceden de raíces latinas o griegas, Bilbao: Universidad de Deusto, p. 621