licence

Forms

licence f (oblique plural licences)^[1]

• license, liscence, licience, lisance, licenche, lycence^[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin licentia (“freedom to act, permission”),^[1][4][5] formed from licēns (“free, unrestrained”) and the suffix -ia, the participle of licet (“it is allowed”).^[1][6] In Late Latin the noun took on special senses such as permission to marry and leave to teach in a faculty.^[7][8] The FEW treats the word in its article on liceō, whose inherited descendants in Old French include loist “it is permitted” and loisir.^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The AND's first citation for the word is dated 1155.^[3] On the continent the TLFi dates it to about 1170, in Piramus et Tisbé, for freedom or the possibility of doing something.^[4] Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence uses it in 1171–1174 for permission: quant il en out licence “when he had leave to do so”.^[10][2][11]

Semantic evolution

In Old French the word meant freedom, permission and authority, with Greimas adding power and possibility.^[12][10] In documents it often came with congié in la licence et congié “leave and permission”.^[2] Before 1350 it is used of the leave to teach and the university degree: Qui de phisique avoit licence “who held a licence in medicine”.^[4][13]

From 1509 the word took on the bad sense of excessive freedom and loose morals, and poetic licence is recorded in 1534.^[4] The general sense of freedom to do something grew old in the 17th century.^[7]

Timeline

• 1155 – first citation in the AND.^[3]
• c. 1170 – “freedom, possibility” in Piramus et Tisbé.^[4]
• 1171–1174 – “permission” in Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence's Life of Thomas Becket.^[2][11][4]
• before 1350 – the leave to teach, a university degree.^[4]
• 1509 – “excessive freedom, loose morals”.^[4]
• 1534 – licence poétique.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. freedom, liberty to do something.^[4][3]
2. permission, leave, authorization.^[2][12][10]
3. leave to be away.^[1]
4. power; possibility.^[10][14]
5. (Anglo-Norman) a document granting permission; a marriage licence.^[3]
6. a university degree, the leave to teach.^[13][4]

Anglo-Norman

The AND first cites the word from 1155 and lists spellings such as licens, liceunce, liscence and lycenz.^[3] Its insular senses run from freedom and permission to a document granting permission, a marriage licence and a diploma, and it records phrases for asking and giving leave.^[3] Etymonline dates English licence “formal authorization” to the late 14th century, from the Old French word.^[15]

Word family

• licenciier

Descendants

• Middle French licence (→ French licence)^[16][4]
• English licence, English license (borrowed)^[1][15]

Related words

• loisir

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Baldinger, Kurt; Möhren, Frankwalt; Städtler, Thomas, eds. (1971–2021), Dictionnaire étymologique de l'ancien français (DEAF), Heidelberg: Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften; DEAFél / DEAFpré, deaf-server.adw.uni-heidelberg.de, p. s.v. licence
3. ^ a b c d e f g Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–), p. s.v. licence
4. ^ 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
5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France, p. 408
6. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. s.v. licentia
7. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert, p. s.v. licence
8. ^ Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. licentia
9. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 5:309
10. ^ a b c d Greimas, Algirdas Julien (1979), Dictionnaire de l'ancien français jusqu'au milieu du XIVe siècle, 2nd ed., Paris: Larousse (printing of 1988), p. s.v. licence
11. ^ a b Möhren, Frankwalt, Dictionnaire étymologique de l'ancien français (DEAF): Complément bibliographique, electronic version (DEAFBiblEl), Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, alma.hadw-bw.de/deafbibl (texts by siglum, with their dates), p. SThomGuernW1
12. ^ a b Tobler, Adolf; Lommatzsch, Erhard (1925–2002), Altfranzösisches Wörterbuch, 11 vols., Berlin / Wiesbaden / Stuttgart: Weidmann / Steiner, p. 5:402
13. ^ a b Tobler, Adolf; Lommatzsch, Erhard (1925–2002), Altfranzösisches Wörterbuch, 11 vols., Berlin / Wiesbaden / Stuttgart: Weidmann / Steiner, p. 5:403
14. ^ Godefroy, Frédéric (1881–1902), Dictionnaire de l'ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IXe au XVe siècle, 10 vols., Paris: Vieweg / Bouillon, p. 4:774
15. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
16. ^ Dictionnaire du Moyen Français, version 2015 (DMF 2015), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/dmf, p. s.v. licence