oignon

Forms

oignon m (plural oignons)^[1] Old French unniun (about 1190), hunion (about 1200), oingnun (1260), ognon (1275); oignon from 1332.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French unniun, inherited from Latin ūniō (“a kind of onion without cloves”) (accusative ūniōnem).^{[4][2][5][1][6]} In Latin it was a dialect word, given by Columella, beside the usual caepa, the source of cive.^[4][2][5] In imperial Latin the word meant chiefly a large pearl, and it is linked with ūnus (“one”) because the onion, unlike garlic, has a single bulb;^[4][2][5] Rey notes that this may be a popular etymology.^[4][2][5] The unstressed /u/ developed as in Old French jostise from justitia.^[5]

The Latin word also passed into Germanic, giving Old English ynne, later replaced by English onion, which came from French through Anglo-Norman.^[2] Most other Romance languages use descendants of Late Latin caepulla, such as Italian cipolla and Spanish cebolla.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

An Old French glossary of about 1190 has unniun, the onion plant.^[4][2]

Semantic evolution

Besides the plant and its bulb, from 1538 it named the bulb of other plants,^[4][7] and by likeness of shape a painful swelling of the big toe (1611, oignon du pied; 1701), a large old-fashioned pocket watch (1834, in a popular song) and, in slang, the anus (1883).^[4][2]

Il y a de l'oignon “there is something fishy” (1595) was still common in 19th-century slang.^[2][4] Se mettre en rang d'oignon first meant to join a company where one does not belong (Cotgrave, 1611) and took its modern sense “in a single line” in 1654;^[4][2] Rey sets aside the story of a baron d'Oignon who seated the deputies at Blois in 1576 as resting only on a homonymy.^[4][2] Later came aux petits oignons “done with great care” (1855), from slow cooking with small onions, and c'est pas tes oignons (1922) and occupe-toi de tes oignons (1948).^[4][2] Popular French clipped it to gnon “a blow” in the 19th century.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 1190 – Unniun in an Old French glossary.^[4]
• 1275 – The form ognon.^[2][3]
• 1332 – The spelling oignon.^[2][3]
• 1538 – Used of the bulb of other plants.^[4]
• 1595 – Il y a de l'oignon “there is trouble afoot”.^[4][2]
• 1611 – Cotgrave records se mettre en rang d'oignon and oignon du pied.^[4]
• 1654 – En rang d'oignons “in a row” in Scarron.^[4][2]
• 1834 – A popular song uses it for a pocket watch.^[4]
• 1855 – Aux petits oignons is recorded.^[4][2]
• 1922 – C'est pas tes oignons.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. The onion (Allium cepa), a garden plant with a strong-smelling edible bulb.^[8][9][1]
2. The bulb of this plant, used in cooking: soupe à l'oignon.^[8][7]
3. The bulb of certain other plants, such as the tulip or lily.^[4][8][1]
4. A painful bunion on the foot.^[4][8]
5. (dated, familiar) A large, thick pocket watch.^[4][8]
6. (in the plural, familiar) One's own business: occupe-toi de tes oignons, c'est pas tes oignons.^[4][1]
7. En rang d'oignons: in a single line, side by side.^[8][2]
8. Aux petits oignons: prepared with great care, perfect.^[4][2][1]

Word family

• oignonnade
• oignonet
• oignonière
• gnon

Related words

• union
• un
• cive
• ciboule
• Latin ūniō
• English onion

Usage notes

The ⟨i⟩ of oignon is silent;^[9] Littré noted that some wrote ognon.^[9] Wiktionary also records a spelling pronunciation /wa.ɲɔ̃/.^[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 g h i j k l m n o p q r s Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x 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
5. ^ a b c d e f g 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. 14, 43b
7. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette