cinghio

Forms

cinghio m (plural cinghi)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *cinglum, from Latin cingulum (“belt, girdle”).^[1][2][3][4] Sabatini–Coletti calls it the popular form beside the learned cingolo, and Wiktionary calls the two doublets.^[4][1]

The Latin noun is formed from cingō (“to gird”) and the instrument suffix -ulum.^[5][1] DEI notes that the Latin word is well represented in the Alpine dialects for a rock ledge, the same as cengia, and that Pistoia has the same word, stressed on the first syllable, for a wood or a cliff falling almost sheer.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first and only Old Italian records are in Dante's Commedia (before 1321), for a circle of Hell and a terrace of Purgatory.^[6] GRADIT dates it to 1313–1319.^[2]

Semantic evolution

Dante uses it for the first circle of the “blind prison” (nel primo cinghio del carcere cieco), for the terrace of Purgatory where envy is scourged (questo cinghio sferza / la colpa de la invidia), and for the bank enclosing the ditches of the eighth circle of Hell.^[7][8][9]

Later the word survived as a literary term for a circle or ring.^[7][2] Pascoli used it for the white row of a horse's teeth (il bianco cinghio / dei denti).^[7][2][8] Modern dictionaries mark it as archaic and poetic.^[4][8][10]

Timeline

• 1313–1319 – Dante uses cinghio in the Commedia.^[2][6]
• Late 19th or early 20th century – Pascoli writes of il bianco cinghio / dei denti.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. (archaic, poetic) A circle or ring.^[2][11][8]
2. (in Dante) A circle of Hell or a terrace of Purgatory, and the bank that encloses the ditches of the eighth circle of Hell.^[2][11][6]

Word family

• cinghione

Related words

• cingolo
• cingere
• cinghia
• cengia
• Latin cingulum

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
3. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 945
4. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
7. ^ a b c d Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
8. ^ a b c d Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
9. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
10. ^ Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
11. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier