justifier

Forms

justifier^[1] Old French justifiier;^[2] Anglo-Norman also has justefier and justifyer.^[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Late Latin iūstificō (“to treat justly, to declare just”), a word of Christian Latin.^[3][4][5][6] The Latin verb is formed from iūstus (“just”) (the source of juste) with the verbal suffix -ficō, which goes back to faciō (“to make, do”).^[4][7][3] The Grand Robert instead analyses it as a compound of iūs (“right, law”) and the verb meaning “to make”.^[8]

Cognate with Old Occitan justificar, Spanish justificar and Italian giustificare.^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in the first half of the 12th century, in the Oxford Psalter, in the sense “to declare someone just, to recognize someone as innocent”.^[3] Rey describes this first use as “to clear someone in court”.^[4] The Old French translation of Job asks whether man will be justifiiez in the likeness of God.^[9]

Semantic evolution

In Middle French the verb left the courtroom: from 1368 it meant “to prove, to establish a fact”, and, from 1587 justifier de was “to bring proof of something”, extended to proving that an opinion or judgment was well-founded.^[3][4] From 1670 it could mean “to confirm afterwards”, as when events bear out an opinion, a nuance that sets it apart from légitimer.^[3][4]

An old technical sense “to check a measure” (1260) led to printing: in 1521 the verb meant to file a type matrix so that its depth was even, and later to align lines of type to a set width.^[4][3] The theological sense, “to make righteous, as grace does the sinner”, appears in 1564, at the time when justice was being specialized in theology.^[4][3]

Timeline

• c. 1120 – First record, in the Oxford Psalter, in the sense “to declare innocent”.^[3][4]
• 1260 – Used for checking a measure.^[4]
• 1368 – “To prove, to establish a fact”.^[3][4]
• 1521 – First use in typefounding.^[3][4]
• 1564 – The theological sense “to make just” appears.^[3][4]
• 1587 – Justifier de “to bring proof of”.^[3][4]
• 1670 – “To confirm afterwards”, in Bossuet.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. To clear (someone) by explaining their conduct or showing that an accusation is unfounded;^[10] se justifier: to prove one's innocence.^[10]
2. To make (something) legitimate: la fin justifie les moyens, the end justifies the means.^[10]
3. To give reasons for (something), to show that it is right or well-founded: Elle a justifié sa décision devant le conseil.^[10]
4. To confirm (a judgment, a hope) after the event.^[10][3]
5. To show (something) to be true by arguments or evidence, to prove;^[10] (law) justifier de: to provide proof of.^[10]
6. (theology) To make righteous, as grace does the sinner.^[3][10]
7. (printing) To justify lines of type, aligning them to a set width.^[10][4]

Word family

• justifiable
• injustifié
• justificateur
• justificatif
• injustifiable
• justifiant

Related words

• juste
• justification
• Latin iūstificō

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
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. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 5, 85a
6. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert