noce

Forms

noce f (plural noces)^[1] Old French noces, nosces;^[2] Middle French also nopces.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French noces, inherited from Vulgar Latin *noptiae, an alteration of Latin nuptiae (“wedding, marriage, sexual union”) under the influence of *novius (“bridegroom”), from novus (“new”).^[2][3][4][5] The Latin noun comes from the supine of nūbō (“to marry (of a woman)”), literally “to take the veil for a husband”, the veiling being the central rite of a Roman wedding.^[3][6] Rey thinks the verb probably has the same root as nūbēs (“cloud”), with a sense “to cover”.^[3]

Cognate with Italian nozze and Old Occitan nossas.^[4][7] The learned nuptial comes from the same Latin word.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record, in the prologue to the Vie de saint Alexis (early 12th century), is noces virginels, probably the mystical union of a soul with Christ, a sense taken from medieval church Latin.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Before the 16th century the word was almost always plural; the singular then gradually won in everyday speech.^[3][2] From about 1150 it named the wedding ceremony and the festivities after it, and épouser en seconde noce is recorded in 1680.^[2][3] About 1200 it meant the married couple, a sense lost before the classical period, and also any great celebration.^[3][2]

From the idea of feasting came faire nopces “to make merry” (1690) and faire la noce “to revel” (1834), with a sense of debauchery recorded from 1719.^[2][3] By understatement, ne pas être à la noce (1829) means to be in a difficult spot.^[3][6] The verb nocer “to live it up” (1836) and noceur (1834) belong to this use.^[3]

Timeline

• Early 12th century – Noces virginels “mystical union” in the Vie de saint Alexis.^[2]
• c. 1150 – “Wedding and its festivities” in the Roman de Thèbes.^[2]
• c. 1200 – “The married couple” and “great festivities”.^[2]
• 1680 – Espouser en seconde noce in Richelet.^[2]
• 1690 – Faire nopces “to make merry” in Furetière.^[2]
• 1829 – Ne pas être à la noce.^[3][6]
• 1834 – Faire la noce “to feast, revel”.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. (usually plural) A wedding, marriage: nuit de noces, voyage de noces.^[8][2]
2. The festivities that follow a wedding, and the guests who attend them: toute la noce dansait.^[8][6][1]
3. (familiar) A riotous party: faire la noce, to revel.^[6][1]
4. Noces d'argent, noces d'or: the anniversary of a marriage, after 25 or 50 years.^[7][6]

Word family

• nocer
• noceur

Related words

• nuptial
• Latin nuptiae

Usage notes

Se marier en secondes noces is to marry for the second time, and convoler en justes noces to marry lawfully.^[8][2]

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 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 i j k l 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 7, 209b
6. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert