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Etymology and origin of the French word finance

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
c. 1280 Adenet le Roi, Cléomades More words from the 13th century
Ultimate origin
Latin fīnis
Derivations

Pronunciation

Forms

finance f (plural finances)[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Old French finer + -ance, the verb meaning “to pay”.[2][1][3][4] The verb first meant “to bring to an end” (1080, in the Chanson de Roland), then “to settle a transaction” and so “to pay” (12th century);[5][6] it is an altered form of finir, influenced by Old French fin (“money”).[2][3][5] Medieval Latin fīnō, derived from Latin fīnis (“end, limit”), went through the same senses, “to bring to an end”, “to demand money” (1212) and “to give money” (1234).[5][2]

Old Occitan likewise had finar (“to pay”) and finansa (“agreement, payment”).[3] Littré compares the Berry form fignance and Italian finanza.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first record is about 1280, in Adenet le Roi's Cléomades, in the sense “payment”.[2] Bloch and Wartburg date it to 1283 in Beaumanoir, meaning a payment or ransom;[3][6] the Anglo-Norman Dictionary has it from 1230–53 in the senses “ending” and “payment, ransom”.[8]

Semantic evolution

From “payment, ransom” it came to mean “money” (1377), a sense kept in moyennant finance and in the familiar la finance.[2][5] About 1400 it named the resources a person has, still used in the plural (l'état de ses finances).[5][2] The plural fineances meant the revenues of the State as early as 1314, and trésorier des finances is found in the later 15th century;[2][5] by metonymy finances named the public offices that manage these funds (1832).[5]

Under the Ancien Régime the singular named the administration of taxes (1549) and the sum paid to the king for an office;[5][7] today it means the whole field of banking and money dealings, and those who work in it.[5][9] In Swiss French finance is a contribution or fee to be paid.[5] English finance (about 1400) comes from Old French finance “ending, settlement, payment”.[10]

Timeline

  • 1080 – Old French finer “to bring to an end” appears in the Chanson de Roland.[5]
  • c. 1280 – Finance “payment” appears in Adenet le Roi's Cléomades.[2]
  • 1314 – The plural fineances is used of the revenues of the State.[2]
  • 1377 – It means “money”.[2][5]
  • c. 1400 – It names a person's resources.[2][5]
  • c. 1400 – English borrows finance.[10]
  • 1549 – It names the royal tax administration.[5]
  • 1770 – Raynal uses the sense the GLLF dates to him.[6]
  • 1832 – The plural names the government's finance offices.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (dated) Money, ready cash.[11][9][2] Moyennant finance: in exchange for money.[11][9][2]
  2. (familiar, plural) A person's money and resources: mes finances sont au plus bas.[11][9]
  3. (plural) The revenue and expenditure of the State and public bodies, and their management: ministère des Finances.[11][9][12]
  4. The world of large money dealings, banking and the stock exchange, and the people engaged in it: haute finance.[9][12]
  5. The science of managing private, company and public funds.[12]
  6. (historical) Under the Ancien Régime, a sum paid to the king to acquire an office.[12][7]
  7. (Switzerland) A contribution or fee.[5]

Word family

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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 Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  4. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 558b
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  9. ^ a b c d e f Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  10. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  11. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  12. ^ a b c d Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
Cite this entry

“Finance.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/finance. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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