établir
Pronunciation
- IPA: /e.ta.bliʁ/[1]
Forms
établir[1] Old French establir; the modern spelling prevails only after 1636.[2][3]
Etymology
It is inherited from Old French establir, inherited from Latin stabiliō (“to make firm, support, prop up”).[4][5][2] The Latin verb is derived from stabilis (“firm, steady”), properly “able to stand upright”, which gave the adjective stable, and goes back to stō (“to stand”), from an Indo-European root meaning “to stand”.[2][6] Littré instead posited an unattested Latin *stabilescō, on the model of the Spanish verb.[7]
Cognate with Old Occitan establir, Spanish establecer and Italian stabilire.[7][8]
Earliest recorded meaning
In the Chanson de Roland (about 1100) it means to draw up or form troops into battalions: Naimes li dux puis establist la quarte.[4][7][2]
Semantic evolution
From the military sense of setting something firmly in place, the verb came to mean “to found, fix”.[2] About 1155 Wace uses it for fixing something durably by law, and it was soon said of peace and liberty (about 1175) and of setting a date (about 1155); after 1250 it also meant “to decide”.[4][2] The Petit Robert dates to about 1300 the sense of settling people somewhere, now dated.[9]
Later senses include setting up one's residence (1538), proving a fact by argument (1656, Pascal), and settling a child by marriage or a position (1680, Richelet).[6] The past participle used as a noun gave établi, a workbench (1390), and the verb formed établissement (1155) and rétablir (about 1120).[8][4]
Timeline
- c. 1100 – Establir in the Chanson de Roland, of forming troops.[4]
- 1155 – Wace uses it for fixing something by law.[4][2]
- c. 1175 – Said of establishing peace or liberty.[2]
- 1390 – The derived noun établi, a workbench.[8][4]
- 1538 – Robert Estienne records the sense of fixing one's residence.[6]
- 1636 – The spelling établir is recorded by Monet.[6]
- 1656 – Pascal uses it for proving a fact.[6]
- 1680 – Richelet records the sense of settling a child in life.[6]
Meanings
Verb
- To set or install something firmly in a place: établir une usine dans une ville, établir un camp.[9][6]
- To found, set up (an institution, a business, a government).[6][1]
- To institute durably (a rule, a custom, a doctrine).[9][1]
- To prove, demonstrate (a fact, a responsibility).[9][1]
- To draw up (a document, a bill, a list).[1][9]
- (sports) To set (a record).[1]
- (dated) To settle (a child) in life by marriage or a position.[9][6]
- S'établir: to settle somewhere, or to set up in business.[9][1]
Word family
- établissement
- établi
- préétablir
- rétablir
- rétablissement
Related words
- stable
- étable
- Latin stabiliō
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
- ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
- ^ a b c d e f g Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
- ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 12, 218a
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
- ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
- ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
- ^ a b c d e f g Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert