glas

Forms

glas m (invariable)^[1] Old French clas beside glas; the form glais is found about 1225.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French glas, inherited from Vulgar Latin *classum,^[3][5][2][6] from Latin classicum (“trumpet signal”),^[3][6] the neuter of classicus, derived from classis (“army, fleet”).^[7][4][6] Initial /k/ became /g/ by assimilation to the following voiced consonant, as in glaire; the forms spelt with ⟨ai⟩ beside those with ⟨a⟩ are not yet explained.^[3][2][6] Littré notes that the Latin word named a trumpet signal that called men together.^[8]

Cognate with Old Occitan clas and Italian chiasso (“din, uproar”).^[2][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 1140 in the Pèlerinage de Charlemagne for a peal of bells in general: Tost fait le glas suner par la citet (“he has the bells rung at once throughout the city”).^[3][6]

Semantic evolution

Wace used it for the ringing of all the bells of a church (1160–1174). From about 1225 it named the slow tolling for someone's death;^[3][6][2] Bloch and Wartburg date the restriction to that sense from the 16th century.^[3][6][2] Since 1803 it has also meant the gun salutes fired at a funeral.^[6][4] The figurative sonner le glas de “to announce the end of” dates from 1837.^[6][3] The Anglo-Norman word also meant a trumpet, a loud crash and lamentation.^[9]

Timeline

• c. 1140 – Glas “peal of bells” appears in the Pèlerinage de Charlemagne.^[3]
• 1160–1174 – Wace uses it for the ringing of all a church's bells.^[3]
• c. 1225 – Glais is used for the death knell in Florence de Rome.^[3][4]
• 1803 – Boiste records the sense “funeral gun salute”.^[4][6]
• 1837 – Balzac uses it figuratively.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. The slow toll of a church bell announcing a death, or a funeral: on entendit le glas.^[10][11][12]
2. Sonner le glas de quelque chose: to mark or announce its end, its downfall.^[10][11]
3. The gun salutes fired at the funeral of a sovereign or senior officer.^[8][4]

Word family

• sonner le glas

Related words

• classe
• Latin classicum

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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 c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 746a
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
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. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
10. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
11. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
12. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)