trotter

Forms

trotter^[1] Old French troter.^[2][1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Frankish *trottōn (“to run”),^[3][4][5][6] a form inferred from Middle High German trotten (“to run”) (modern German trotten).^[3][4] Wiktionary has it pass through Medieval Latin *trottō.^[1] The Frankish verb is an intensive of the family of treten (“to step, tread”), from Old High German tretan, which also includes Old English tredan, the source of the English word tread.^[4][5][6] Bloch and Wartburg note that it cannot date from the time of the oldest borrowings from West Germanic, when the simple verb still began with /d/.^[5] Kluge, cited by Rey, connected the group with Ancient Greek δρόμος (drómos, “course, race”).^[4]

It spread to the southern languages: cognate with Italian trottare, Old Occitan trotar, Catalan trotar, Spanish trotar and Portuguese trotar.^[7][5] An older explanation, from Saumaise, that Littré accepted, derived it from Vulgar Latin *tolūtō, built on tolūtim (“at a trot”);^[2][7] Meyer-Lübke rejects it as impossible.^[2][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears about 1160 in the Roman d'Eneas, meaning to make one's horse go at a trot, in an obscene double meaning.^[3][4] Of the horse itself it is found in Chrétien de Troyes' Conte du Graal (1181–1190).^[3]

Semantic evolution

Early on it was applied to people who walked a great deal or went about on foot (the Roman de Renart, 1178),^[3][4] and in the early 13th century to the rider.^[3][4] Se trotter “to run off, to make oneself scarce” is found in Villon (1456) and is still familiar,^[3][4] and trotter menu, to walk with quick little steps, is recorded before 1550.^[3]

In Middle French things too could “trot”, going to and fro (about 1480); Rabelais uses it in 1546 of things moving quickly here and there.^[4][3] Of thoughts it is recorded from 1698, and the phrase une idée trotte dans la tête from 1722.^[3][4] La Fontaine (1666) used it for running about on errands.^[3][8] In riding, the transitive trotter un cheval “to make a horse trot” dates from 1680.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 1160 – Roman d'Eneas: to make one's horse trot.^[3]
• 1178 – The Roman de Renart uses it of people walking far.^[3]
• 1181–1190 – Chrétien de Troyes uses it of the horse.^[3][4]
• Early 13th century – Said of the rider in the Lai du trot.^[3]
• 1456 – Villon has se trotter “to run off”.^[3]
• Before 1550 – Trotter menu.^[3]
• 1546 – Rabelais uses it of things.^[3][4]
• 1666 – La Fontaine: to rush about on errands.^[3]
• 1680 – Transitive use in riding.^[4]
• 1698 – Said of thoughts.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. Of a horse or similar animal, to go at a trot; of a rider, to ride at a trot.^[9][3][2]
2. Of people and small animals, to walk quickly with short steps: Une souris trottait le long du mur.^[9][10]
3. To go to and fro, to run about on many errands.^[9][3][2]
4. (figurative) Of an idea or tune, to keep coming back to mind: Cette idée lui trotte dans la tête.^[4][3][2]
5. Se trotter (familiar, dated): to run off, to make oneself scarce.^[4][3]
6. (transitive, riding) To make a horse trot.^[4]

Word family

• trot
• trotte
• trotteur
• trottin
• trottiner
• trottoir
• trotte-menu
• trottinette

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x 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 c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, 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. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b c Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
9. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse