Etymologically
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grec

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɡʁɛk/[1]

Forms

grec (feminine grecque, masculine plural grecs, feminine plural grecques)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin Graecus (“Greek”), from Ancient Greek Γραικός (Graikós).[2][3][1][4] The Greek word is very rare in Greek literature, where the usual name is Ἕλλην (Héllēn); it is probably a foreign word, perhaps Illyrian, that passed early into Latin through Etruscan.[2] Littré says it was the name of one Hellenic people that the Romans gave to the whole nation.[5]

The learned form replaced those that came from the Latin word by sound change: griu, griois, grézois, which survives in grégeois, and griesche, which survives in grièche.[2][1][6] The feminine spelling ⟨grecque⟩, instead of ⟨grèque⟩, reflects an older spelling habit, as in becquée and socque.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Benoît de Sainte-Maure's Roman de Troie (about 1165) uses it as an adjective, of the Greek language.[3][2]

Semantic evolution

As a noun it named an inhabitant of Greece (Villehardouin, about 1208: li Franc et li Grec), and, from 1512 the Greek language.[3] In the 16th century un grec was a Hellenist (1527), whence the figurative senses “learned” (1640) and “skilled, knowing” (1651).[3][2] The sense “cunning, skilled at deceiving” (1578) alludes to the old reputation of the Greeks for trickery, and gave the 18th- and 19th-century sense of a cardsharp (1721).[2][3]

Phrases include à la grecque (1584), calendes grecques (Rabelais), never, and profil grec (Sand, 1833).[3][7] C'est du grec means “it's double Dutch”.[8] In recent slang un grec is a kebab sandwich.[1]

Timeline

  • c. 1165 – The adjective, in Benoît de Sainte-Maure.[3]
  • c. 1208 – The noun, “a Greek”, in Villehardouin.[3]
  • 1512 – Le grec, the language.[3]
  • 1527 – “A Hellenist”.[3][2]
  • 1578 – “Cunning, deceitful”.[3][2]
  • 1584 – À la grecque.[3]
  • 1721 – “A cardsharp”.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Greek, of Greece, ancient or modern: les îles grecques, la mythologie grecque.[8][1]
  2. Profil grec, nez grec: with the nose in line with the forehead.[8][3]
  3. Croix grecque: a cross with four equal arms, calendes grecques: never.[7]

Noun

  1. Grec: a Greek, an inhabitant of Greece.[1][3]
  2. Le grec: the Greek language, ancient or modern: grec ancien, grec moderne.[1]
  3. (dated) A cardsharp.[2][3]
  4. (slang) A kebab sandwich.[1]
  • grégeois
  • grecque
  • Latin Graecus

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ 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
  4. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 4, 210a
  5. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  6. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert