doyen

Forms

doyen m (plural doyens, feminine doyenne)^[1] Old French deien (1174–1176), then doïen (1349); doyen is recorded from 1576.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French deien, inherited from Late Latin decānus (“commander of ten soldiers, dean”), derived from decem (“ten”).^[3][2][4][5] In Christian Latin the word named the monk in charge of ten others in a monastery;^[3][2] Medieval Latin applied it to the master of a group of estate craftsmen (1047–1053), losing the idea of ten, then to the head of a guild (about 1080) and to the senior bishop (1261).^[3][2] The learned form décan has also been used for the church title.^[2]

Cognate with Old Occitan degan, Italian decano and Catalan degà;^[4][6][7] Meyer-Lübke derives Spanish deán and Portuguese deão from the French word.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as deien in Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence's Vie de saint Thomas (1174–1176), as a church title.^[3][2][6]

Semantic evolution

As with Latin decanus, the word named the elected head of a craft guild (li doïens, about 1349); a 1576 letter of Plantin speaks of the doyens and elders of the printing trade.^[3][2] In 1636 Monet records it for the head of a university faculty, and Furetière (1690) for the elected officer of some universities and faculties.^[3][2]

From the 17th century the stress fell on seniority: Monet (1636) uses it for the oldest councillor of a parliament, Scarron (before 1660) for the oldest person in general, and Richelet (1680) for the longest-serving member of a body.^[3][2] Doyen d'âge is used to avoid confusion with the title.^[2] In literary style it has been applied to an old and venerable thing, such as a tree, and in African French it is used of an elderly, respected man, also as a form of address.^[2] English dean (early 14th century) is from Old French deien.^[8]

Timeline

• 1174–1176 – Deien appears as a church title in the Vie de saint Thomas.^[3][2]
• early 14th century – English dean is recorded.^[8]
• c. 1349 – Doïen names the elected head of a craft guild.^[3][2]
• 1576 – The spelling doyen is found, in Plantin's letters.^[2][3]
• 1636 – Monet records the university sense and the sense “oldest councillor”.^[3]
• before 1660 – Scarron uses it for the oldest person.^[3]
• 1680 – Richelet gives the sense “longest-serving member of a body”.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. (religion) A church title, the dean of a chapter or of a collegiate church;^[9][3][10] curé doyen, the priest at the head of a deanery.^[9][3][10]
2. The head of a university faculty: la doyenne de la faculté des sciences.^[9][11]
3. The senior member of a body by order of admission: le doyen du conseil municipal.^[9][12][11]
4. The oldest person in a group, also doyen d'âge.^[9][11][12]
5. (Africa) An elderly, respected man, also as a form of address.^[2]

Word family

• doyenné

Related words

• décanal
• décanat
• dix
• décan
• Latin decānus
• English dean

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ 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
4. ^ a b 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. 3, 22b
6. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
11. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
12. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse