acier

Forms

acier m (plural aciers)^[1] Old French acer (about 1100) and asser;^[2][3] açiir in Rashi's glosses.^[2][3] Anglo-Norman acer.^[4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French acer, inherited from Late Latin aciārium (“steel”), derived from aciēs (“point, edge (of a weapon)”).^[2][3][5][6] The Late Latin word is glossed “hard iron”, beside Classical chalybs.^[2] The Latin noun shares the root seen in acide and aigu, which Wiktionary gives as Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”).^[3][7][1] Rey explains the name by the hard, sharp point of a weapon, made of a metal stronger than iron.^[3]

Cognate with Italian acciaio, Occitan acièr, Catalan acer, Spanish acero and Portuguese aço.^[1][5][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest record is açiir “steel” in Rashi's French glosses (second half of the 11th century); about 1100 the Chanson de Roland has acer for the metal, for the edge of a sword and for a steel weapon.^[2]

Semantic evolution

From the start the word meant both the metal and, as in Latin, the point or blade of a weapon.^[3][2] Figuratively d'acier “as hard as steel” is used of courage and character (about 1200; d'Aubigné, early 17th century).^[2][3] The concrete sense gained weight in the 18th century, when Réaumur worked out the technical concept (1720–22) and aciérie appeared, and in the 19th century with industrial production; the word also stands for the steel industry.^[3][5]

The derivative acéré “fitted with steel” (1155) came to mean “sharp”, figuratively “biting”.^[3][5]

Timeline

• Second half of the 11th century – Açiir in Rashi's glosses.^[2]
• c. 1100 – Acer in the Chanson de Roland, for the metal and a sword's edge.^[2]
• 1155 – Acéré “fitted with steel”.^[3]
• c. 1200 – Figurative d'acier dur trempé in the Chanson des Saxons.^[2]
• 1720–22 – Réaumur works out the technical concept of steel.^[3]
• 1751 – Aciérie “steelworks” appears.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. steel: an alloy of iron and carbon: une lame en acier inoxydable.^[8][1]
2. (figurative) D'acier: very strong, unyielding: des nerfs d'acier.^[3][2]
3. (literary) A steel blade or weapon.^[2][3]
4. The steel industry.^[3]

Word family

• acéré
• aciérer
• aciérie

Related words

• aigu
• acide
• Latin aciēs

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
5. ^ a b c d e Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 104b
7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert