livèche

Forms

livèche f (plural livèches)^[1] Old French luvesche and liuvesche (13th century), livesche (14th century), and in later medieval texts leuvesse and luposche.^[2][3][4][5] The spelling livèche dates from the 17th century.^[6]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French luvesche, inherited from Vulgar Latin *levistica, from Late Latin levisticum (“lovage”), recorded from the 4th century.^[2][3][7][8] The Late Latin word is an alteration of Latin ligusticum, the neuter of ligusticus (“Ligurian”), from Ligus (“a Ligurian”): the plant was named after the land it was thought to come from.^[2][6][7]

Cognate with Italian levistico, Portuguese levistico and Walloon lavase.^[9][10] German Liebstöckel has the same Latin source.^[10]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in the middle of the 13th century, as luvesche in a glossary in Glasgow, for the plant lovage.^[2][11] A 13th-century medical text quoted by Littré tells the reader to dig up the root of the liuvesche with a spade.^[9]

Semantic evolution

The word has always named the same aromatic umbelliferous plant, valued in medicine: medieval recipes use its root and seeds,^[4][2] Paré prescribes the root in the 16th century,^[9] and modern dictionaries still describe its seeds and roots as cleansing and stimulating.^[2][12]

Timeline

• mid-13th century – Luvesche appears in a glossary.^[2]
• 14th century – The Antidotaire Nicolas has livesche.^[2][6]
• 15th century – A glossary gives luposche for Latin lupistica.^[9]
• 16th century – Paré writes racine de livesche.^[9]
• 17th century – The spelling livèche is in use.^[6]

Meanings

Noun

1. (botany) Lovage, a strongly scented perennial plant of the umbellifer family, whose roots and seeds are used in medicine.^[12][2] Also called ache de montagne.^[12][2][13]
2. Livèche des prés: the meadow plant silaüs des prés, also called saxifrage des prés.^[9]

Related words

• ache
• Latin levisticum

References

1. ^ a b 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Dictionnaire du Moyen Français, version 2015 (DMF 2015), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/dmf
5. ^ Tobler, Adolf; Lommatzsch, Erhard (1925–2002), Altfranzösisches Wörterbuch, 11 vols., Berlin / Wiesbaden / Stuttgart: Weidmann / Steiner, p. 5:742
6. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
8. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 5, 334b
9. ^ a b c d e f Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
10. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 5038
11. ^ Tobler, Adolf; Lommatzsch, Erhard (1925–2002), Altfranzösisches Wörterbuch, 11 vols., Berlin / Wiesbaden / Stuttgart: Weidmann / Steiner
12. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
13. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)