moine

Forms

moine m (plural moines)^[1] Old French monie, munie (1080), muine (about 1119), the form moine from the 13th century.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French monie, inherited from Late Latin monachus (“hermit, monk”), which is from Ancient Greek μοναχός (monakhós, “solitary”), from μόνος (mónos, “alone”).^[2][3][5][6] The Late Latin word meant a hermit before 375 and a monk living in a community before 430.^[2][3]

Wiktionary derives the Old French form from the variant Late Latin monicus, found in an inscription from Gaul, with metathesis of the Old French consonants.^[1] Bloch held that the French word represents this altered form,^[4] while the TLFi and Rey think the variant is not needed for French, though it underlies the Germanic forms such as German Mönch.^[2][3] Meyer-Lübke likewise finds no Romance trace of the variant.^[7]

Cognate with Italian monaco, Old Occitan monge, Catalan monjo, Spanish monje and, through other routes, English monk and Breton manac'h.^[5][8][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Chanson de Roland (about 1100) has monie for a man who lives apart from the world: Ainz deit moine estre en un de ces moustiers in Littré's text.^[2][9]

Semantic evolution

The proverb la robe ne fet pas le moine is found in Jean de Meun's Roman de la Rose (1275–1280); it is now l'habit ne fait pas le moine “do not trust appearances”.^[2][3] Against its etymology the word came to cover any member of a religious order living in community, and by analogy a person who lives like a monk.^[3]

From the shape of the monk's hood or the colour of his robe it named seals (moine de mer, 1605), a shark (1705) and the moineau “sparrow”, first recorded about 1200.^[2][3] It was also a frame holding a pan of embers to warm a bed (1652),^[2][10] and in printing a badly inked sheet (1621), perhaps from the white robe of some orders.^[2][3]

Timeline

• c. 1100 – Monie appears in the Chanson de Roland.^[2]
• c. 1119 – Philippe de Thaon writes muine.^[2][4]
• 13th century – The form moine is established.^[3]
• 1275–1280 – La robe ne fet pas le moine in the Roman de la Rose.^[2]
• 1605 – Moine de mer, a seal.^[2]
• 1621 – A badly printed sheet.^[2]
• 1652 – A bed-warmer.^[2][10]

Meanings

Noun

1. A monk, a man who has taken vows and lives by the rule of a religious order: Il s'est fait moine à vingt ans.^[8][2]
2. L'habit ne fait pas le moine: appearances can be deceptive.^[8][3]
3. A wooden frame holding a pan of embers, formerly used to warm a bed.^[2][10]
4. A seal, the monk seal.^[2][11]
5. (printing) A badly inked sheet.^[2][3]

Word family

• moinerie
• moineau
• moinillon
• monial
• moniale

Related words

• monacal
• monastère
• moutier
• Latin monachus

Usage notes

Littré records the familiar gras comme un moine “very fat”.^[9][8]

References

1. ^ a b c 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 q r s 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 c Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 6/3, 64a
7. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, 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 Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
11. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse