Etymologically
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manière

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ma.njɛʁ/[1]
  • IPA (Paris): [ma.njɛʁ][1]
  • IPA (Louisiana): [mɔ̃jæ(ɾ)][1]

Forms

manière f (plural manières)[1]

Etymology

It is the feminine used as a noun of the Old French adjective “manier” “worked by hand; skilful, well trained”, from Latin manuārius (“of the hand”), from manus (“hand”).[2][3][4][5][6] Wiktionary allows a Vulgar Latin “*manāria” as an alternative.[1] Littré rejects Rémusat's derivation from scholastic Latin “maneria” “kind”, which John of Salisbury connected with Latin maneō (“to remain”).[7] Latin expressed the idea with other words: modus, habitus, mōrēs.[3]

Cognate with Old Occitan maneira, Spanish manera, Portuguese maneira and Italian maniera.[7][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Philippe de Thaon (1119) uses it for a way of being or behaving.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Like façon, it entered many phrases from the 12th century on: en nulle maniere (about 1145), en tel maniere que (about 1165), a la maniere de (1395), de manière que (1547), de toute manière (1835).[2][3] Une manière de “a sort of” is in Wace (about 1150).[2] It meant an architect's style (Villard de Honnecourt, 1260) and a painter's (Poussin, 1641), and, from 1699 an affected style, whence maniéré (1679) and maniérisme.[2][3] Of people, Chrétien de Troyes (1170) uses it for bearing and appearance in society; the plural manières (1174–78) is behaviour, manners: les belles manières (1662), faire des manières “to make a fuss” (1862).[2][3]

Timeline

  • 1119 – “Way of being”, Philippe de Thaon.[2]
  • c. 1150 – Une manière de “a sort of”, Wace.[2]
  • 1170 – Bearing, Chrétien de Troyes.[2]
  • 1260 – A style of building, Villard de Honnecourt.[2]
  • 1641 – A painter's manner, Poussin.[2]
  • 1662 – Les belles manières, Pascal.[2]
  • 1679 – Maniéré.[4]
  • 1862 – Faire des manières.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A manner, way: de cette manière, la manière dont il parle, avoir la manière.[8][1]
  2. De toute manière: in any case, de manière à, de manière que: so as to, so that, d'une certaine manière: in a way.[8][9]
  3. À la manière de: in the style of: un tableau à la manière de Watteau.[9][2]
  4. An artist's or writer's style.[9][3]
  5. (in the plural) Manners: les bonnes manières, faire des manières, to put on airs, to make a fuss.[2][3]
  6. (grammar) Adverbe de manière: an adverb of manner.[2][10]

Word family

  • maniéré
  • maniérisme
  • maniériste

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 6/1, 280b
  7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  10. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse