puma

Forms

puma m (plural pumas)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Spanish puma, which is recorded from 1602 in Garcilaso de la Vega,^[2][3][4][1] from Quechua puma.^[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in 1633, in Baudoin's French translation of Garcilaso de la Vega's history of the Incas of Peru, for the American wild cat.^[2][5]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept its single sense, the American feline also called couguar.^[3][6]

Timeline

• 1602 – The Spanish puma is recorded in Garcilaso de la Vega.^[2][3]
• 1633 – Baudoin uses puma in his translation of Garcilaso.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. The puma or cougar, a medium-sized American feline with a tawny coat and no mane.^[7][2][1]

Related words

• couguar
• Spanish puma

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
6. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert