Etymologically
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oublier

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /u.bli.je/[1]

Forms

oublier[1] Old French oblider (late 10th century), oblier, ublier (about 1050); oublier from about 1228.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French oblier, inherited from Vulgar Latin *oblītō, formed on “oblītus”, the past participle of Latin oblīvīscor (“to forget”).[5][4][6][7][1] Rey relates the Latin verb to oblinō (“to smear over, efface”) and an Indo-European root “*lei-” “to pour a greasy substance”, Littré instead followed Corssen in linking it with līvor (“bluish colour”), so that it would mean “to grow dim”.[4][8]

Cognate with Romanian uita, Occitan oblidar, Catalan oblidar and Spanish olvidar; Italian obliare was borrowed from French.[9][1] Many dialects strengthen it with a prefix (“r-”, “d-”, “es-”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

At the end of the 10th century the Passion of Clermont uses oblider for “not to keep in mind”; about 1050 the Vie de saint Alexis has Mais la dolur ne pothent ublïer “but they could not forget the grief”.[5][2]

Semantic evolution

From the first texts it also meant “to neglect” and, in 1214, “to leave something behind by mistake”.[5][4] The reflexive s'oublier meant “to fail in one's duty” (about 1100); in courtly literature, “to lose consciousness of oneself”, as in a lover's trance (1176–81); later “to put others before oneself” (Montaigne, 1588), and as a euphemism “to relieve oneself in the wrong place” (Zola, 1882).[5][4]

Avoir oublié d'être bête “to be no fool” dates from before 1848.[4] The flower name ne m'oubliez mie (1408, later ne-m'oubliez-pas) was translated as German Vergissmeinnicht and English forget-me-not.[6] The derivative oubliette dates from 1372–74.[4][6]

Timeline

  • Late 10th century – Oblider in the Passion of Clermont.[5][2]
  • c. 1050 – Ublïer in the Vie de saint Alexis.[5]
  • c. 1080 – The noun oubli.[6][4]
  • c. 1100 – S'oublier in the Chanson de Roland.[5]
  • 1214 – “To leave behind by mistake”.[4]
  • 1408 – Ne m'oublie mie, the forget-me-not.[6]
  • 1588 – S'oublier, self-denial, in Montaigne.[5]
  • 1882 – S'oublier as a euphemism, in Zola.[5]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To forget: j'ai oublié son nom.[10][1]
  2. To forget to: oublier de fermer la porte.[8]
  3. To leave behind: oublier son parapluie.[1][11]
  4. To neglect; to overlook, forgive: oublier une offense.[5][2]
  5. S'oublier: to forget oneself, misbehave; to think only of others, (euphemism) of a child or animal, to have an accident.[5][4]

Word family

  • oubliette
  • oublieux
  • oubli
  • inoubliable

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  3. ^ 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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
  6. ^ a b c d e f Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 7, 271b
  8. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  10. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  11. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)