Etymologically
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descendre

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /de.sɑ̃dʁ/[1]

Forms

descendre[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin dēscendō (“to go down, come down; to derive from”), an early borrowing (about 980); the Latin verb is formed from dē-, marking downward motion, and scandō (“to climb”) (see scander).[2][3][4][5][1] Bloch and Wartburg treat it as the continuation of the Latin verb, Wiktionary as a borrowing passed down through Old French.[6][1] The sense “to come from, be descended from” (13th century) was taken again from the language of Latin law.[6]

Cognate with Old Occitan deissendre, Catalan descendir and Spanish descender.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found at the end of the 10th century in the Passion of Clermont: L'angeles Deu de cel dessend “the angel of God comes down from heaven”.[4][2]

Semantic evolution

The Chanson de Roland (about 1100) uses it for going down (jus del paleis descent) and for dismounting (de sun cheval descent); from about 1375 it was said of a rider stopping at an inn, and then of any traveller putting up somewhere.[4][2] In 1559 (Amyot) it meant “to land and attack”, whence later descendre dans la rue “to demonstrate”, descendre “to go south” is recorded in 1823.[4][2]

“To be descended from” is in Benoît de Sainte-Maure (1154–1173), and descendant about 1260, descendre “to sink in rank” is in Corneille (1665), and in music “to pass from high to low” (1754).[4] Transitive uses go back to Chrétien de Troyes (about 1177, “to unhorse someone”); in familiar French descendre quelqu'un is to shoot someone down.[4][8]

Timeline

  • Late 10th century – Dessend in the Passion of Clermont.[4]
  • c. 1100 – “To go down” and “to dismount”, in the Chanson de Roland.[4]
  • 1154–1173 – “To be descended from”, in Benoît de Sainte-Maure.[4]
  • 1283 – Descendance, in Beaumanoir.[6]
  • 1304 – Descente.[6]
  • 1559 – “To land in force”, in Amyot.[4]
  • 1665 – “To sink in rank”, in Corneille.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To go or come down, descend: descendre l'escalier, descendre d'un arbre.[8]
  2. To get off or out: descendre du train; to stay at: descendre à l'hôtel.[4][2]
  3. To go south: descendre à Marseille.[8][4]
  4. To be descended from: descendre d'une famille noble.[4]
  5. To fall, go down in level, value or pitch.[4]
  6. To take or bring down: descendre une valise, (familiar) to shoot down, kill; to drink up.[4][8]
  7. Descendre dans la rue: to take to the streets.[2]

Word family

  • descendance
  • descente
  • redescendre
  • descendant
  • descendeur
  • ascendre
  • scander
  • condescendre
  • Latin dēscendō

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 51a
  6. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert