Etymologically
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garçon

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɡaʁ.sɔ̃/[1]

Forms

garçon m (plural garçons)[1] Old French garçun (1080); it was the object case of gars, which remained as a popular and regional word.[2][3][4][5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French garçon, the object case of gars, probably borrowed from Frankish *wrakkjō (“vagabond, outcast”), object case “*wrakkjone”, later “*wrakjóne” with a shift of stress (compare the latinized “waracionem”, 7th century, and the personal name “Wracchio”, 9th century).[2][3][4][6] The Frankish word is reconstructed from Old High German hrechjo (“fugitive, exile”), Old Saxon wrekkio (“fugitive, wretch”) and Middle Dutch recke (“exile”); compare German Recke (“hero”) and English wretch.[2][3][7] Wiktionary takes it through Early Medieval Latin garciō to Proto-Germanic *wrakjô (“exile, one driven out”).[1]

Pierre Guiraud rejected the Germanic origin and saw a Romance word, from “*carptio”, a doublet of Latin carptor (“slave who carved the meat”), from a verb “*carptiare” “to tear, cut up”, an alteration of carpō.[3][8] Littré, following Diez, already found the word very difficult.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as garçun in the Chanson de Roland (about 1100) meaning a servant of low rank, especially in the army, the kitchen or the hunt; it was also a term of abuse.[2][3][6]

Semantic evolution

In the Middle Ages garçon meant a young man of low birth, the noble youth being a valet or varlet, bachelier and damoiseau stressed youth rather than birth.[3] The sense “male child, young man” is found about 1160 (Roman d'Eneas), and “son” in 1564, Bloch and Wartburg date its spread to the 16th century.[2][4]

From “servant” came “journeyman, shop assistant” (1554) and the café waiter (1750).[2] The sense “bachelor” dates from 1636, whence vie de garçon, enterrer sa vie de garçon (1929) and garçonnière “bachelor flat” (1835).[2][4] La Garçonne (1922) is a novel by Victor Margueritte.[4] English garçon for a waiter is a later borrowing, garcon “boy, youth” is found about 1300.[7]

Timeline

  • c. 1100 – Garçun “servant” in the Chanson de Roland.[2]
  • c. 1160 – “Boy, young man”, in the Roman d'Eneas.[2]
  • c. 1185 – Garçonnet.[4]
  • 1554 – A journeyman, in Gouberville.[2]
  • 1564 – “Son”.[2]
  • 1636 – “Bachelor”, in Monet.[2][4]
  • 1750 – A café waiter.[2]
  • 1835 – Garçonnière.[4]
  • 1922 – Garçonne, in Victor Margueritte.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A boy, a male child: les filles et les garçons, garçon manqué, a tomboy.[6]
  2. A son: ils ont deux garçons.[6][2]
  3. A young man; a fellow: un brave garçon, un beau garçon.[2][6]
  4. A bachelor: rester garçon, vie de garçon.[2][4]
  5. A waiter in a café: Garçon !, (dated) a journeyman or shop assistant.[2]

Word family

  • garçonnet
  • garçonnière
  • garçonne
  • garce

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 p q 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 e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  6. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert