Etymologically
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roi

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Pronunciation

Forms

roi m (plural rois, feminine reine)[1] First the Latin form rex (about 880), then Old French rei (about 980) and roi (about 1160); the spelling roy, from the 13th century, was common in the 17th.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French rei, inherited from Latin rēx (“king; ruler, Jupiter”), from the accusative “rēgem”.[5][2][6][7] Rey places the Latin word among the Indo-European terms of politics and religion found at both ends of the Indo-European area: Sanskrit राज् (rāj-) in compounds, “rā́jan-” “king” (compare rajah), Old Irish rí and Gaulish “-rix” (Vercingetorix), whence the Germanic adjective behind riche.[2][8] “Rēx” is naturally connected with regō (“to guide, direct, rule”) (compare régir); Benveniste saw in it the priest who traced the line between the sacred and the profane.[2]

Cognate with Romanian rege, Italian re, Occitan rei, Catalan rei, Spanish rey and Portuguese rei.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Sequence of Saint Eulalia (about 880) the emperor Maximian is rex, a ruler over the pagans; the Chanson de Roland has Charles li reis, nostre emperere magne.[5][9]

Semantic evolution

From the earliest texts it was also used of Christ (late 10th century) and God (reis de majesté, about 1145).[5] The Epiphany is the feste des trois Roys (1324), whence the galette des rois and Rabelais' finding the bean in the gasteau des Roys (1533); le roi boit! is the cry when the bean-king drinks (1579).[5][10] In games it is the chess king (Chrétien de Troyes, 1176) and the card king (Molière, 1661; earlier in 1571).[5][10]

Figuratively it is a person with every comfort (Roman de Renart, 1175–80) and the best in a field: the king of minstrels (about 1245), roi des ribauds (1269–78).[5] Bleu de roi dates from 1690, and the proverb le roi n'est pas son cousin from 1595.[5][10]

Timeline

  • c. 880 – Rex, Sequence of Saint Eulalia.[5]
  • c. 980 – Rei.[2][4]
  • c. 1160 – Roi.[2][3]
  • 1176 – The chess king, Chrétien de Troyes.[5]
  • 1324 – Feste des trois Roys.[5]
  • 1606 – Roy Très-chrestien, title of the kings of France, in Nicot.[5]
  • 1661 – The card king, Molière.[5]
  • 1690 – Bleu de roi.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A king, monarch: le roi de France, vivre en roi.[8][1]
  2. (chess, cards) The king.[1][5]
  3. The greatest in a field: le roi des animaux (the lion).[1][5]
  4. Les Rois: the Epiphany (la fête des Rois), when the galette des rois is eaten.[1][5]
  5. (religion) Le Roi des rois: God or Christ.[5][4]

Word family

  • royaume
  • royauté
  • royal
  • roitelet
  • vice-roi

Usage notes

Heureux comme un roi means very happy, au royaume des aveugles, les borgnes sont rois: in the kingdom of the blind the one-eyed man is king.[9][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ 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
  6. ^ 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. 10, 366b
  8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  10. ^ a b c Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF