insuline

Forms

insuline f (uncountable)^[1]

Etymology

It is a learned formation from Latin īnsula (“island”) with the suffix -ine, coined in 1909 by J. de Meyer.^[2][3][4] The name alludes to the islets of Langerhans, the cells of the pancreas that produce the hormone.^[2][3][5] The Petit Robert and Larousse instead take the word from English insulin (1923);^[6][7] Etymonline dates the English word to 1922 and says that the French word was coined independently in 1909.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Meyer wrote in 1909 that the internal secretion of the pancreas, if it came from the islets of Langerhans, might be called insuline.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The word entered the general dictionaries in 1931 (Larousse).^[5][6] The therapeutic importance of the hormone gave a series of derivatives and compounds: insulinique (before 1946), insulinase, insulinémie, insulinothérapie and insulinodépendant, said of diabetes that requires regular injections of insulin.^[3]

Timeline

• 1909 – J. de Meyer proposes the name.^[2][3]
• 1922 – The English word insulin is recorded.^[8]
• 1931 – Larousse records insuline.^[5][6]
• Before 1946 – The adjective insulinique appears.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. A hormone secreted by the islets of Langerhans of the pancreas, which lowers the level of glucose in the blood and is used in treating diabetes.^[6][2][7]

Word family

• insulinique
• insulinodépendant
• insulinothérapie

Related words

• île
• insulaire
• Latin īnsula
• English insulin

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
6. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com