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aria

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Pronunciation

Forms

aria f (plural arie)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin āera (“air”), the accusative of āēr in its Greek form, taken from Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr, “air”).[2][3][4][1] The Latin accusative copied ἀέρα (aéra) and is already found in Cicero and Seneca.[5] It changed by metathesis to Vulgar Latin *area and was taken as a feminine.[3][6][7] Devoto points out that the metathesis came late enough for the word to stay apart from Latin ārea, which became aia.[7]

The other Romance languages continue the ordinary Latin accusative ⟨aerem⟩: French air, Occitan aire, Catalan aire, Spanish aire and Portuguese ar;[3][8][5] only Italian and Sardinian àera go back to the Greek type.[3][5] Old Italian and the northern dialects also had masculine forms such as Old Italian aire and Old Italian aere, relics of the Latin nominative, which the feminine ⟨aria⟩ displaced.[5][9] The origin of the Greek word is uncertain.[2]

The sense “look, expression” has had separate explanations.[2] DEI derives it from Old French aire (“origin, nature, character”), from the same Latin noun, which merged in French with ⟨air⟩;[2][10] Prati compares the development of boria “vanity”.[2][10] DELI finds Prati's view convincing for “haughtiness”, as in the phrase for putting on airs, but less so for “look”.[2] Gabrielli sees French influence in this sense.[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is the Venetian Proverbia quae dicuntur super natura feminarum, of the late 12th century.[12] The masculine aire is recorded from about 1274, and are from the 13th century.[5] DELI's first date for aria as the gas that forms the atmosphere is Dino Compagni's chronicle, 1310–1312.[2][4]

Semantic evolution

Already in Old Italian the word covered the air as one of the four elements, the sky, a breeze or wind, and a person's look or bearing.[12][5] Petrarch speaks of “quel'aria dolce del bel viso adorno” (that sweet air of the lovely face), and DELI dates the sense “look, facial expression” to him.[2][9]

In the 16th century aria came to mean a tune, recorded in 1550, and, from 1720 a vocal or instrumental piece with a set form, the aria of opera and oratorio.[2][13] The musical word spread across Europe: German Arie (1619), French air (1608, a calque) and aria (1703), and English aria (1742).[13] Etymonline dates English aria “melody for a single voice” to 1775.[14] Arietta is recorded from 1618 for a light air and arioso from 1829 for a form between aria and recitative.[2]

Aria compressa “compressed air” is recorded in 1892 and aria condizionata in 1938.[3] DELI notes, after Klajn, that the second phrase reverses the English air-conditioned: in Italian it is the air, not the room, that is conditioned.[2]

Timeline

  • Late 12th century – The word appears in the Venetian Proverbia quae dicuntur super natura feminarum.[12]
  • c. 1274 – The masculine form aire is recorded.[5]
  • 1310–1312 – Dino Compagni uses aria for the air.[2]
  • Before 1374 – Petrarch uses it for a person's look.[2]
  • 1550 – Aria “tune” is recorded.[2][13]
  • 1608 – French air “tune” copies the Italian sense.[13]
  • 1619 – German borrows the word as Aria, later Arie.[13]
  • 1720 – Aria names a set piece for voice or instruments.[13]
  • 1742 – English aria is first recorded.[13]
  • 1938 – Aria condizionata is recorded.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. air, the mixture of gases, mainly nitrogen and oxygen, that forms the atmosphere and is needed for life: Apri la finestra, qui l'aria è pesante.[4][6][15][1]
  2. The space above the ground, the sky: in aria, per aria, all'aria “up, in the air”.[4][15][16]
  3. Moving air, a breeze or wind: Stasera tira un'aria fresca.[15][4][1]
  4. climate: l'aria di mare, l'aria di montagna, cambiare aria, to go somewhere else.[4][15][6]
  5. (figurative) The mood or atmosphere of a place or moment: In ufficio si respira un'aria tesa.[15][4]
  6. Look, appearance, expression: Hai l'aria di chi non ha dormito.[15][4][1]
  7. arie (plural): airs, haughtiness: darsi delle arie, to put on airs.[4][2][1]
  8. (music) A tune; a set piece for solo voice in an opera or oratorio, an aria.[4][15][13]
  9. The choke of a petrol engine.[15]
  10. aria! (interjection): clear off!, get out![6][15]

Word family

  • arieggiare
  • arietta
  • arioso
  • aerare

Usage notes

Common phrases are all'aria aperta “in the open air”, aria fritta “empty talk”, campare d'aria “to live on nothing”, mandare all'aria “to wreck (a plan)” and colpo d'aria, a chill caught from a draught.[4][6][16] Ario “Aryan” and its feminine aria are a different word, from Sanskrit.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  3. ^ a b c d e f Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 1, 1056
  6. ^ a b c d e Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  7. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  8. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  9. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  10. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975)
  11. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
  12. ^ a b c Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
  14. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  16. ^ a b Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli