capituler

Forms

capituler^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Medieval Latin capitulō (“to enumerate, to report point by point, to stipulate in an agreement”), a verb recorded about 778 in the first sense and in the 15th century in the second.^{[2][3][4][5][1]} The Medieval Latin verb comes from Latin capitulum (“article, clause, chapter”), from caput (“head”).^[2][3][4] Littré explains the sense: a capitulation is divided into articles.^[6]

The Latin noun also gave the church words capitule and capitulaire, and the word for head gave chef.^[3] Cognate with Occitan capitolar (“to arrange in chapters”).^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 1370 in Oresme's Éthiques, meaning “to divide into parts”, a sense still in Cotgrave in 1611.^[2][3] The Grand Larousse and the Petit Robert date Oresme's use to 1361.^[7][8]

Semantic evolution

The old sense “to divide into parts” was lost in the 17th century.^[3] From 1540 (Budé) the verb meant “to come to an agreement, to negotiate”, which until the early 17th century was its main sense.^[2][3][4] It was soon specialized in war, first for negotiating the terms of a surrender, as in La Noue in the 16th century, then for surrendering to the enemy (1751, Voltaire).^[2][3][6]

The figurative sense “to give up an uncompromising position” is found before 1696 in La Bruyère and became “to give in”.^[2][3] Because surrender was felt as cowardly, the pejorative suffix gave capitulard (1871), first in the war of 1870.^[3][4]

Timeline

• c. 1370 – Oresme uses it for “to divide into parts”.^[2]
• 1540 – Budé uses it for “to come to an agreement, negotiate”.^[2][3]
• 16th century – La Noue uses it for negotiating the terms of a surrender.^[2][6]
• 1611 – Cotgrave still records “to divide into parts”.^[2]
• Before 1696 – La Bruyère uses it for giving up an uncompromising stand.^[2][3]
• 1751 – Voltaire uses it for “to surrender to the enemy”.^[2][3]
• 1871 – capitulard is recorded.^[3][4]

Meanings

Verb

1. (intransitive) To surrender to an enemy on agreed terms: la garnison a capitulé;^[8][9] capituler avec les honneurs de la guerre.^[8][9]
2. (figurative) To give up one's position, to yield: il a fini par capituler devant ses enfants.^[8][7]
3. (classical) To negotiate, to discuss terms.^[7][2]
4. (obsolete) To negotiate the terms of one's surrender.^[7][2]

Word family

• capitulard
• capitulation

Related words

• capitulaire
• capitule
• chapitre
• chef
• Latin capitulum

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 266a
6. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)