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amitié

Etymology and origin of the French word amitié

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
mid-11th century (amistet)
Inherited from
Latin *amicitas via Old French
Ultimate origin
Latin (amīcus)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /a.mi.tje/[1]

Forms

amitié f (plural amitiés)[1] Old French amistet (mid-11th century), then amistié (about 1170) and amitié (about 1330).[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French amistié, inherited from Vulgar Latin *amīcitās (“friendship”), an alteration of classical Latin amīcitia, derived from amīcus (“friend”) (see ami).[2][4][3][5][6][7][1] The late derivative is not attested, but its existence is assured by the Romance forms.[2] Littré notes that the classical word would have given a different form.[8]

Compare Catalan amistat, Spanish amistad and Portuguese amizade; Italian amistà comes from Occitan.[2][4][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Chanson de Roland (about 1100) has amistez and Par amistié, bel sire, la vous don, “I give it to you in friendship, fair lord”: a feeling of goodwill.[8][2][5]

Semantic evolution

In Old French, as with ami, the word covered goodwill (about 1050), filial, conjugal, charitable or religious affection, which modern French calls amour (about 1220), and erotic love (1170), a range it kept until the 18th century.[2] It narrowed only as the strong erotic and sentimental values were eliminated, a step marked by the appearance of the adjective amical in the 18th century.[2] Amitié particulière was long a euphemism for a homosexual attachment.[6][5]

The plural amitiés means friendly greetings: Froissart already has ces lettres et ces amitiés.[8][6]

Timeline

  • Mid-11th century – Amistet.[2]
  • c. 1100 – Amistié, Chanson de Roland.[8]
  • 1170 – A love relationship.[2]
  • c. 1330 – The form amitié.[2]
  • 18th century – The adjective amical.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. friendship, mutual affection not based on blood or sexual attraction: se lier d'amitié avec quelqu'un, par amitié pour.[6][1]
  2. Friendly relations: between peoples or countries, amity.[6][1]
  3. Amitiés: kind regards, best wishes.[6]
  4. (dated) Amitié particulière: a homosexual attachment.[6][5]
  • ami
  • amical
  • inimitié

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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 440b
  8. ^ a b c d e Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette

Related etymologies

  • le · also from Latin
  • pas · also from Latin
  • il · also from Latin
  • elle · also from Latin
  • aller · also from Latin
  • dans · also from Latin
  • pour · also from Latin
  • ce · also from Latin
Cite this entry

“Amitié.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/amiti%C3%A9. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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