culinaire

Forms

culinaire (plural culinaires)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin culīnārius (“of the kitchen”), from culīna (“kitchen”).^[2][3][4][5] The Latin noun was a synonym of coquīna, the source of cuisine, and is related to coquō (“to cook”), the source of cuire.^[3][6] Rey reports the view that the Latin word was altered under the influence of cūlus (“backside”), latrines often adjoining the kitchen in Rome, and that the noun is also found in the sense of latrines, so that it would at first have been a mocking term.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Rabelais's Tiers Livre (1546), meaning “of the kitchen”.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

The word lost all its Latin connotations and simply means what has to do with cooking and the preparation of food, as in l'art culinaire.^[3][7] Cotgrave recorded it in his French–English dictionary of 1611.^[7] The derivatives culinairement (1825) and culinarité (19th century) are little used.^[3]

Timeline

• 1546 – Rabelais uses culinaire in the Tiers Livre.^[2][3][4]
• 1611 – Cotgrave records the word.^[7]
• 1825 – The adverb culinairement appears.^[3]

Meanings

Adjective

1. culinary, relating to cooking and the preparation of food: Il a publié un livre de recettes culinaires.^[6][2][8]

Related words

• cuisine
• cuire
• gastronomique
• Latin culīna

Usage notes

The phrase l'art culinaire is the usual term for the art of cooking.^[7][6]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse