clamer

Forms

clamer^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French clamer, inherited from Latin clāmō (“to cry out, demand loudly, proclaim”).^[2][3][1][4] In Medieval Latin the verb also meant “to appeal to a judicial authority” (8th–9th century); Meyer-Lübke thought this legal sense might owe something to a Germanic word such as German klagen (“to lament, to bring a complaint”).^[2][3] The sense “to shout”, very rare before Daudet, is perhaps due to Occitan clamar.^[2][3]

Rey compares the Latin verb with Ancient Greek καλέω (kaléō, “to call”) and Old High German hellan (“to resound”), within a large group of imitative words beginning in ⟨kl⟩ and ⟨kr⟩, among them calō (“to call”), clārus (“clear”), classis and Ancient Greek κέλαδος (kélados, “noise”).^[3] Wiktionary traces it to Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- (“to shout”).^[1]

Cognate with Italian chiamare, Romanian chema, Catalan clamar, Spanish llamar and Portuguese chamar.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the Chanson de Roland (about 1100), meaning to proclaim or call someone something; the same text has the legal phrase clamer quitte “to give up all claim to”.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

In Old French clamer meant to call someone, especially by name, a sense kept regionally in Champagne and in Italian chiamare.^[3] In legal contexts it meant “to proclaim publicly” and “to claim, demand” (about 1131, Couronnement de Louis), a sense limited to the Middle Ages.^[2][3] Its old noun claim or clain was ousted by clameur.^[3] English claim (about 1300) comes from the stressed stem of Old French clamer.^[6]

The sense “to cry out” (13th century) was rare in Old French and very rare in the 17th century;^[2][3] Furetière (1690) called the verb an old legal word.^[2][3] It was revived with a literary tone in the second half of the 19th century, notably by Alphonse Daudet in 1874.^[2][3][7]

Timeline

• c. 1100 – The Chanson de Roland uses it for “to proclaim” and in clamer quitte.^[2]
• c. 1131 – The Couronnement de Louis uses it for “to claim, demand”.^[2]
• 13th century – The sense “to cry out” appears.^[2][3]
• c. 1300 – English claim is recorded.^[6]
• 1690 – Furetière calls it an old legal word.^[2]
• 1874 – Daudet revives the sense “to cry out”.^[2][3]

Meanings

Verb

1. (literary) To express one's feelings or convictions loudly and forcefully, to proclaim: clamer sa colère.^[5][8][9][2]
2. To shout, to say in a loud voice.^[7][2]
3. (old law) To summon to court, to make public.^[2]

Related words

• clameur
• acclamer
• déclamer
• exclamer
• proclamer
• réclamer
• English claim

Usage notes

The Petit Robert gives the pronunciation with back /ɑ/, [klɑme]; the TLFi records both [klame] and the back vowel.^[5][2]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 729a
5. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
9. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)