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italien

Etymology and origin of the French word italien

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation, Borrowing
First attested
c. 1265, Brunetto Latini (ytaliiens)
Ultimate origin
Latin (Italia)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /i.ta.ljɛ̃/[1]

Forms

italien (feminine italienne, masculine plural italiens, feminine plural italiennes)[1] First ytaliiens (about 1265); modern spelling in 1512.[2][3] Feminine italienne; as a noun for a person, Italien, Italienne.[1]

Etymology

It is either derived from the name Italie or borrowed from Italian italiano (“Italian”) (first half of the 14th century, Dante), itself from Italia, from Latin Italia;[2][3][4] the GLLF derives it from Italian.[5] The Latin name comes from the name of the people of Italy.[3][4] Littré reports an old explanation of the Latin name as “the land of calves”, comparing Latin vitulus (“calf”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Brunetto Latini's Trésor (about 1265) has ytaliiens for the inhabitants of Italy;[2][7] Commynes (about 1490) writes of mil hommes d'armes ytaliens.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

L'italien for the language, the literary Tuscan, is recorded in 1512 (Lemaire de Belges).[2][3] The adjective is applied to persons from 1551 and to things from 1606, whence à l'italienne (La Noue, 1587).[3][5] Italienne “a kind of handwriting” (1765) has disappeared, as have the 18th-century uses of the noun for a jealous man and for a sodomite (1718).[3]

Les Italiens was the old Parisian theatre of the Italian comedians, the troupe that played the commedia dell'arte in Paris from 1659 to the end of the 18th century (Madame de Staël, 1786).[3][2] The verb italianiser reflects the weight of Italian culture in 16th-century France.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1265 – Ytaliiens, Brunetto Latini.[2]
  • 1512 – The Italian language, Lemaire de Belges.[2]
  • 1551 – Adjective of persons.[3]
  • 1566 – Italianizé.[3]
  • 1587 – À l'italienne, La Noue.[5]
  • 1786 – Les Italiens, the theatre.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Italian, of Italy: la cuisine italienne, à l'italienne, in the Italian manner, format à l'italienne, landscape format.[8][1]

Noun

  1. L'italien: the Italian language.[1][8]
  2. Un Italien, une Italienne: an Italian.[1][5]
  3. (history) Les Italiens: the Italian comedy theatre in Paris.[3][2]

Word family

  • italianiser
  • italianisation
  • italianisant
  • Italie

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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 g h i j k 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 d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  6. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  7. ^ a b Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  8. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
Cite this entry

“Italien.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/italien. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·