civiltà

Forms

civiltà f (invariable)^[1] Old Italian forms are civilitade, civilità, civiltade and civiltà.^[2]

Etymology

It is learned: it is borrowed from Latin cīvīlitās, through its accusative.^{[3][4][3][5][4][6][1]} Wiktionary allows that it may be a semi-learned form.^[1] The Latin noun is formed from cīvīlis (“of citizens; civil; courteous”) with the suffix -tās, and the adjective from cīvis (“citizen”).^[7][8][1] Old Italian had the fuller civilitade and civilità beside the shortened civiltade.^[2][9][2][9]

The Latin word is attested from Quintilian, and the learned borrowing is shared with Middle French civilté, Catalan civilitat, Old Spanish civilidad and Portuguese civilitade.^[10] Sabatini–Coletti takes the sense “good manners” through French civilité.^[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is Dante's Convivio (1304–07), with the form civilitade, for an ordered society of people under laws;^[2][3][12] Dante speaks of an umana civilitade directed to a happy life.^[2][3][12] DELI dates the senses “citizenship” and “courtesy” to the Convivio as well.^[3]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century civiltà meant citizenship (in the vernacular Bible) and courtesy (in the Ottimo commentary on Dante), and buona civiltà meant a well-ordered life together.^[3][2] Machiavelli used the word for a political community kept together by religion and laws.^[12]

The modern sense, the whole of a people's material, social and spiritual life, is recorded from Vasari in 1550 (civiltà greca, romana), and the sense of progress reached by a people from Tasso in 1594, at first as civilità.^[10][3] In the 20th century set phrases name modern society by a trait: civiltà dei consumi (from 1966) and civiltà tecnologica (from 1975).^[10][4] The sense “citizenship” is now obsolete.^[4][9]

Timeline

• 1304–1307 – Dante's Convivio has civilitade.^[2][3]
• 14th century – The form civiltà appears in the vernacular Bible and the Ottimo commentary.^[3]
• 1550 – Vasari uses the word for the culture of a people.^[10]
• 1594 – Tasso uses civilità for the progress of a people.^[10][3]
• 1729 – Salvini uses civiltà in this sense.^[10]
• 1966 – Civiltà dei consumi is recorded.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. civilization: the material, social and cultural features of a people, an age or a region: la civiltà etrusca.^{[4][8][11][1]}
2. (archaeology) The material culture of a prehistoric population: la civiltà del bronzo.^[4][13]
3. Progress: the advanced state of social, political and technical life reached by humankind, as opposed to barbarism.^[4][8][9]
4. civility, good manners, courtesy: Ha discusso con molta civiltà.^[4][11][1]
5. (obsolete) Citizenship.^[4][9]

Word family

• semiciviltà

Related words

• civile
• cittadino
• Latin cīvīlitās
• French civilité

Usage notes

Civiltà is invariable in the plural (le civiltà antiche).^[1][4] Zingarelli contrasts it with cultura, narrower in scope, and progresso, the advance towards more developed forms.^[9]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
6. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
7. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
9. ^ a b c d e f Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
10. ^ 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. 14, 910
11. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
12. ^ a b c Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
13. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)