jugement

Forms

jugement m (plural jugements)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from French juger + -ment.^[2][3][4] Wiktionary allows also an origin in Late Latin iūdicāmentum.^[1] The verb juger is from Latin iūdicō (“to judge”).^[4]

Compare Occitan jutjament, Catalan jutjament, Italian giudicamento, Old Spanish juzgamiento and Portuguese julgamento.^[5][1] Old French also used juise, from Latin iūdicium.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Chanson de Roland (about 1100) it is a sentence given by a court or judge.^[2][5]

Semantic evolution

From the early 12th century it named the Last Judgement, when God will judge the living and the dead, as in the Voyage de saint Brendan.^[2][6] It came to cover all the senses of juger and juge: an appraisal, favourable or not, outside a court (about 1165), weakened to “opinion” in Charles d'Orléans.^[2][6]

Oresme uses it for the faculty of the mind that compares and judges (1370–1372), and Descartes (1637) for the act of the mind that asserts a content as true.^[2][6] In law the Petit Robert reserves it for a decision of a court not called a cour.^[7]

Timeline

• c. 1100 – The Chanson de Roland uses it for a court's sentence.^[2]
• Early 12th century – The Voyage de saint Brendan uses it for the Last Judgement.^[2]
• c. 1165 – Benoît de Sainte-Maure uses it for an appraisal outside a court.^[2]
• 1370–1372 – Oresme uses it for the faculty of judging.^[2]
• First half of the 15th century – Charles d'Orléans uses it for an opinion.^[2]
• 1549 – Robert Estienne records ester en jugement.^[8]
• 1637 – Descartes uses it for a mental act asserting a truth.^[2]
• 1690 – Furetière records jugement définitif.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act of judging a case or an accused person.^[7][9][10]
2. (law) A decision given by a court of first instance;^[7][9] jugement par défaut.^[7][9]
3. Jugement de Dieu: in feudal law, an ordeal.^[7][9][10]
4. Jugement dernier: the Last Judgement of Christian belief.^[7][10]
5. An opinion, favourable or not, about someone or something;^[10][9] porter un jugement, jugement de valeur.^[10][9]
6. The faculty of the mind that judges and discerns; good sense: il manque de jugement.^[9][7]
7. (philosophy, logic) The act of thought that affirms or denies a proposition.^[9][2]

Related words

• juger
• juge
• préjugé
• Latin iūdicō

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ a b c Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b c d e f g Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
9. ^ a b c d e f g h Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
10. ^ a b c d e Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)