Etymologically
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protéger

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pʁɔ.te.ʒe/[1]

Forms

protéger[1] The Académie wrote proteger in 1694 and 1718, protéger from 1740.[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin prōtegō (“to cover in front; to shelter; to protect”), from prō- (“in front”) and tegō (“to cover; to shelter”) (see toit).[2][3][4][5][1][6] protection (12th century) and protecteur (1234) were borrowed earlier from the Late Latin derivatives “prōtēctiō” and “prōtēctor”.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Eustache Deschamps (end of the 14th century) prays Douce Vierge [...] nous deffen, protege et garde; of a thing it is found in 1395, but the verb is rare before the 17th century.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Se protéger is in Voltaire (1756), and of a thing that forms a shield, a barrier, in 1763.[2][3] In the classical period the idea of support came first: to further someone's interests or career (1671), whence “to keep a woman” (Balzac, 1838).[2][3] The Encyclopédie (1754) speaks of protecting the arts and sciences and a country's trade, the source of protectionnisme (1845).[2][5] Un protégé is found in 1741, État protégé in 1875, passage protégé on the roads about 1955, and computer files are protégés from 1969.[2][3]

Timeline

  • Late 14th century – Eustache Deschamps.[2]
  • 1395 – Of a thing.[2]
  • 1671 – To further someone's career.[2]
  • 1741 – Protégé, protégée.[2]
  • 1754 – To protect trade, Encyclopédie.[2]
  • 1838 – To keep a woman, Balzac.[2]
  • 1845 – Protectionnisme.[5]
  • 1969 – In computing.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To protect, defend, shelter: protéger les faibles, protéger quelqu'un contre, se protéger du froid.[7][8][1]
  2. Of a thing, to shield: la haie protège le jardin du vent.[2][9]
  3. To support, patronize: protéger les arts; to further someone's career.[2][9]
  4. (economics) To protect a country's industry by tariffs.[3]
  5. (computing) To protect a file against access or copying.[2]

Word family

  • protégé
  • protège-cahier
  • protège-dents
  • protège-tibia

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 q 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c d 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. 9, 469b
  7. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette