nous

Pronunciation

• IPA: /nu/^[1]
• IPA: /nu.z‿/^[1]

Forms

nous (first-person plural, singular je, object nous, emphatic nous, possessive determiner notre)^[1] Old French nos (about 881), nous from the end of the 12th century.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French nos, inherited from Latin nōs (“we, us”), the first person plural pronoun, stressed and unstressed.^[4][5][6][1] “Nous” is the form that developed in unstressed position, the only one attested from the first texts.^[7] The Latin word continues an old oblique form, comparable to the unstressed Sanskrit नः (naḥ), which replaced an old nominative from other roots, as in Sanskrit वयम् (vayám) and Gothic 𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍃 (weis).^[4]

Cognate with Italian noi, Spanish nos, Old Occitan nos and Portuguese nós.^[7][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Sequence of Saint Eulalia (about 881) has nos both before the verb and after a preposition: Tuit oram que por nos degnet preier “let us all pray that she may deign to pray for us”.^[9]

Semantic evolution

In Latin nōs was sometimes used for ego, especially for contrast; from the early Middle Ages (Leo the Great) it served as the plural of majesty for religious and civil authorities, and as the plural of authorship (second half of the 8th century).^[4] Bloch and Wartburg trace the administrative nous to the usage of the Roman emperors, from Gordian III (about 240).^[7] In French the uses of nous were fixed before the end of the 12th century.^[4] Nous for the speaker alone is found in 1200, the nous of modesty in 1213 and the royal nous in 1241.^[4]

Nous autres appears about 1050 and nous-mêmes in the 14th century.^[2] Chez nous “in our country” dates from 1662.^[2][4] In many northern dialects nous as a subject has been replaced by je (j'allons), a usage mocked as rustic since the 15th century.^[7][1]

Timeline

• c. 881 – Nos in the Sequence of Saint Eulalia.^[9]
• c. 1050 – Nos otros in the Vie de saint Alexis.^[2]
• late 12th century – The spelling nous.^[2]
• 1213 – The nous of modesty.^[4]
• 1241 – The royal nous.^[4]
• 1662 – Chez nous “in our country”, in Molière.^[4][2]

Meanings

Pronoun

1. we: first person plural subject pronoun: the speaker with one or more others.^[1][3]
2. Us, to us: object pronoun: il nous regarde, il nous a écrit.^[1][3]
3. Ourselves, each other: reflexive and reciprocal: nous nous sommes regardés.^[3]
4. (formal) We, used for I by an author (of modesty) or a sovereign (of majesty).^[1][4]

Word family

• nous-mêmes

Related words

• notre
• on
• Latin nōs

Usage notes

Nous is also a rare noun, le nous, the mind or divine reason in philosophy, from Ancient Greek νοῦς (noûs).^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
3. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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. 7, 192b
6. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
8. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
9. ^ a b 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