foison

Forms

foison f (uncountable)^[1] Old French fuison (about 1135).^[2] Anglo-Norman also had foisun, fuisun and fusun.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin fūsiō (“a pouring out, diffusion”).^[2][4][5][6] The Latin noun is formed on the supine stem of fundō (“to pour, melt”).^[4][7] The sense “abundance” comes from the idea of what pours out.^[5][8]

Compare Old Occitan foizon, with the same senses.^[5] It is a doublet of the learned fusion.^[1][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is foison “abundance” in Rashi's French glosses (end of the 11th century),^[2][4][9] then fuison in the Couronnement de Louis (about 1135) and a fuison in Gaimar (about 1140).^[2]

Semantic evolution

Old French also used it for a sufficient amount: in Partonopeus ne m'a fuison means “does not satisfy me”, and the Roman de Renart has male foison for a small quantity.^[8] Anglo-Norman gave it senses such as “strength” and “flock”, and it passed into English as foison.^[3]

The word has lost all link with its origin, and today it is in common use only in à foison “in abundance”.^[4][10] The Académie notes that foison takes no article or plural, but writers use it with an article more often than without.^[2] The verb foisonner “to abound” dates from about 1160–1170.^[4]

Timeline

• late 11th century – Foison appears in Rashi's glosses.^[2]
• c. 1135 – Fuison is found in the Couronnement de Louis.^[2]
• c. 1140 – Gaimar uses a fuison.^[2][4]
• c. 1160–1170 – The verb foisonner appears.^[4]
• 1554 – Foisonnement is recorded.^[4][5]

Meanings

Noun

1. (dated) Great abundance, a great quantity.^[10][2][1]
2. À foison: in abundance, galore.^[10][8]

Word family

• foisonner
• foisonnement
• foisonnant

Related words

• fusion
• fondre
• Latin fūsiō

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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 Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 913b
7. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
9. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
10. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert