chancelier

Forms

chancelier m (plural chanceliers, feminine chancelière)^[1] Old French also had cancelier,^[1] and a northern form canceler is found in the Chanson d'Antioche.^[2] Anglo-Norman spellings include chaunceler and chauncelier.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Late Latin cancellārius,^[4][5][6][7] a derivative of cancellī (“lattice, railing”).^[4][5][1] The Latin word first named the usher posted at the barrier that kept the public away from the court of justice or the emperor's seat;^[4][6][8] it then meant an usher (4th century) and a clerk of the court (354).^[4][5] In the early Middle Ages it was the title of the head of the Carolingian royal chancery (769), then of the officer of an abbey (1125) and of a university (13th century) who kept their seals.^[4][5]

Cognate with Old Occitan cancelier and Italian cancelliere.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 1050 in the Vie de saint Alexis, for the head of the papal chancery.^[4][5]

Semantic evolution

Old French took over the senses the word had in Medieval Latin.^[5] From 1174 it named the chief officer of the crown in matters of justice, who kept the royal seal;^[4][5] Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence uses it in his life of Thomas Becket.^[4][5] In the 13th century it was also the churchman who held the seals of a cathedral chapter, and Jean de Meun's Roman de la Rose (1275–1277) uses it for the chancellor of a university.^[4][5] In 1690 Furetière records it for the officer who keeps the seals of a consulate.^[4][5]

Under the old monarchy the chancellor of France was the highest judicial officer, head of the king's councils and keeper of the great seal.^[2][8] In modern French the word translates the title of the head of government in Germany and Austria, and chancelier de l'Échiquier renders the British finance minister's title.^[5][9] In Swiss French the chancellor of State and of the Confederation are the heads of the central administration.^[5]

English chancellor was borrowed from the Old French word in the early 12th century; a form canceler from the northern French dialects existed in Old English but gave way to it.^[10]

Timeline

• c. 1050 – The Vie de saint Alexis uses it for the head of the papal chancery.^[4][5]
• 1174 – Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence uses it for the king's chief officer of justice and keeper of the seal.^[4]
• 13th century – It names the churchman who keeps the seals of a chapter.^[4][5]
• 1275–1277 – Jean de Meun uses it for the chancellor of a university.^[4]
• 1690 – Furetière records it for the keeper of a consulate's seals.^[4]
• 1762 – The feminine chancelière is recorded, for the chancellor's wife.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. (history) Under the French monarchy, the royal officer who kept the seal of France and headed the administration of justice.^[9][11][4]
2. A person who keeps the seals of a body and disposes of them, as in a consulate or an embassy: le chancelier du consulat a signé l'acte.^[9][12]
3. Grand chancelier: the head of an order such as the Légion d'honneur, who seals its brevets.^[9][8]
4. Chancelier de l'Échiquier: the British minister of finance.^[9][11]
5. The head of government in Germany and Austria: le chancelier allemand a reçu le président.^[9][12]
6. Chancelier des universités: the official at the head of the universities of an academy, the recteur.^[9]

Word family

• chancellerie
• chancelariat

Related words

• chancel
• Latin cancellārius
• English chancellor

Usage notes

The feminine chancelière was long used only for the chancellor's wife; today it is also the title of a woman chancellor in Germany and Austria, and Swiss French uses chancelier and chancelière d'État.^[5] A separate noun chancelière, a fur-lined bag for keeping the feet warm, is found from 1611 according to Rey and recorded by the Académie in 1762;^[5][4] the TLFi thinks it perhaps comes from chancelier for unknown reasons,^[4] and Rey suggests an allusion to the cosy habits of canons or high magistrates.^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
3. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r 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
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 173a
8. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
9. ^ a b c d e f g Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
11. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
12. ^ a b Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)