tisser

Forms

tisser^[1] Old French tistre (12th century), also titre and tissir;^[2][3] the form tisser is recorded from 1361.^[3][4] The old past participle tissu still survives in literary use.^[3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French tistre, remade with a new conjugation, inherited from Latin texō (“to weave, plait”).^[3][2][5] The Latin verb passed through a stage *tieistre to this form and to titre, and its forms became so complicated that the verb changed conjugation:^[6][2] it was first replaced by tissir, on the model of issir, which then gave way to the present form; this displaced the others after the 16th century.^[3] The old infinitive was still recorded by the Académie in 1694 and survives in Walloon.^[6]

The origin of the Latin verb is uncertain: Rey finds a link with the Indo-European root of Ancient Greek τέκτων (téktōn, “carpenter”) possible only if one assumes a very vague first sense “to make by a technique”.^[2] Wiktionary derives it from Proto-Indo-European *teḱ- (“to beget, produce”).^[1]

Cognate with Romanian țese, Italian tessere, Occitan teisser, Catalan teixir, Spanish tejer and Portuguese tecer.^[7][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

As tistre it is first found about 1160 in the Roman d'Eneas, of three fairy sisters who wove a purple cloth: to make cloth by interlacing threads.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The verb keeps the concrete Latin sense: to weave a material (1361) and to produce a fabric (1530, Palsgrave), with métier à tisser “loom” recorded rather late (1874).^[2][8] A figurative sense, to put a work together, is found from the 15th century with the old conjugation (tissir, 1483, and in Chastellain about 1470),^[2][3] and was then taken over by tisser.^[2]

Only in the 19th century is it used of animals, especially a spider spinning its web (before 1870), and in the sense of building up lies or intrigues (before 1872).^[2][8] Littré, in 1873, still said the verb was not used figuratively.^[9]

Timeline

• c. 1160 – Tistre appears in the Roman d'Eneas.^[3]
• Early 13th century – The form toiscir is found in a Bible.^[3]
• 1361 – Tisser is recorded in a royal ordinance.^[3][8]
• c. 1470 – Chastellain uses the verb figuratively.^[3]
• 1530 – Palsgrave records it for producing a fabric.^[8][2]
• 1567 – Tisseur replaces the older tissur.^[2]
• 1874 – Métier à tisser is recorded.^[2][8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To weave: to make a fabric by interlacing threads, or to turn a textile into fabric.^[7][3]
2. Of a spider or other animal, to spin a web or similar structure.^[7][8]
3. (figurative) To build up or contrive something piece by piece, as by weaving: tisser des intrigues.^[7]

Word family

• tisseur
• tissage
• détisser

Related words

• tissu
• tisserand
• tissure
• texture
• texte
• Latin texō

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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
4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 13/1, 290b
6. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
9. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette