fonder

Forms

fonder^[1] Old French funder.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin fundō (“to lay the foundation of, to establish”), early in the 12th century, from fundus (“bottom”).^[4][2][5][6] Bloch and Wartburg note that it stayed in contact with written Latin, while Wiktionary treats it as inherited.^[7][1]

Cognate with Italian fondare, Old Occitan fondar and Spanish fundar.^[7][3][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The verb is first found in the Cambridge Psalter (early 12th century), meaning “to set on foundations”: Ki fundad la terre sur sa basse (“who founded the earth on its base”).^[2]

Semantic evolution

From the start it meant “to set on foundations”, whence the biblical images fonder sur le roc and fonder sur le sable.^[4] As in Latin, it soon meant “to establish” a town, a religion or an enterprise (about 1160) and, in the abstract, “to base (something) on” (about 1190).^[2][4] The past participle fondé meant “versed in” from about 1165;^[2] from it came fondé en pouvoir (1601) and fondé de pouvoir (1792).^[2][4] The sense “to give a reasonable basis to, to justify” dates from 1478–80, chiefly in bien fondé, and the legal sense “to provide the funds to set up” from 1690.^[2][4]

Related nouns were taken from Latin: fondateur, with the older Old French fondeor, and fondation (13th century).^[4] Refonder (1993) belongs to political vocabulary.^[4] English found was borrowed from Old French fonder in the late 13th century.^[9]

Timeline

• Early 12th century – The Cambridge Psalter uses it for “to set on foundations”.^[2]
• c. 1160 – Eneas uses it for founding a town or institution.^[2]
• c. 1165 – The participle fondé means “versed in”.^[2]
• Late 13th century – English borrows it as found.^[9]
• 1478–80 – Coquillart writes mon propos est bien fondé.^[2]
• 1690 – Furetière records the legal sense “to endow”.^[10][4]
• 1792 – Fondé de pouvoir appears in Beaumarchais.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. (rare) To set a building on foundations.^[11][2]
2. To found, to set up a town, a school, a company or a family: Ils ont fondé une entreprise en 1990.^[11][3]
3. (law) To provide the funds needed to create an institution.^[4][10]
4. To base something on: fonder un raisonnement sur facts.^[4][10]
5. To give a sound basis to, to justify;^[2][4] bien fondé, well founded.^[2][4]

Word family

• fondé de pouvoir
• refonder

Related words

• fond
• fondation
• fondateur
• fondement
• Latin fundus
• English found

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 n o 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 Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 863a
7. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
8. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
10. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
11. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert