Etymologically
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commesso

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Pronunciation

  • /komˈmes.so/[1]

Forms

commesso m (plural commessi, feminine commessa)[1]

Etymology

It is the past participle of commettere used as a noun: the employee is one to whom a task is entrusted, and the inlay is made of pieces put together.[2][3][4][5][6] The participle continues Latin commissus, from committō (“to bring together; to entrust”), a compound of com- (“with”) and mittō (“to send”).[7][1] Devoto–Oli explains the sense “employee” through a Medieval Latin use of the participle for an agent or deputy.[8]

The phrase commesso viaggiatore “travelling salesman” is, according to DELI, a calque of French commis voyageur (1792); English “travelling salesman” may have helped it, but DELI finds the claim that it is an anglicism unproven.[7][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The participle is recorded as an adjective meaning “entrusted” in Giordano da Pisa (1305–1306).[7] The noun “employee of a shop” is first found in Luca Pacioli before 1510, and the sense “clerk, subordinate employee” in Vincenzo Cuoco in 1801.[7][3] Nocentini and Devoto–Oli date the noun to 1875.[2][8]

Semantic evolution

DEI records the noun in the 15th century for a commercial agent, and earlier, in the 14th century, for a person who had given his goods to a religious house.[9] Tommaseo explains this old commesso as one who paid a sum to be kept and live with others, com'un commesso allo spedale, “like a lay brother at the hospital”, and also records the sense “substitute, deputy”.[10]

The art sense, a work of hard stones fixed with mastic on a marble slab, dates from the 16th century;[8][3][10] Tommaseo says the art was begun in Florence and was also called Florentine mosaic.[8][3][10] In the 19th and 20th centuries the noun spread through offices: a commesso of a bank, of Parliament, of a court, and in the navy the petty officer in charge of provisions.[10][11][3] The feminine commessa also means an order for goods, recorded in 1942.[7]

Timeline

  • 1305–1306 – Giordano da Pisa uses commesso for “entrusted”.[7]
  • 14th century – The noun is used for a donor to a religious house.[9]
  • Before 1510 – Luca Pacioli uses it for a shop employee.[7]
  • 16th century – The sense “inlay of hard stones” is recorded.[8][4]
  • 1792 – French commis voyageur is recorded.[7]
  • 1801 – Vincenzo Cuoco uses it for a clerk.[7]
  • 1942 – Commessa “order for goods” is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. shop assistant, salesperson (feminine commessa): Ho chiesto alla commessa se avevano la giacca in una taglia più grande.[11][8][4][1]
  2. A subordinate employee of a public body or a firm, often in a position of trust: an usher, a messenger: un commesso di banca, i commessi del Senato.[11][8][5][1]
  3. (law) An assistant to a court bailiff.[11][3][4]
  4. (nautical) On a warship, the petty officer in charge of provisions.[8][3][12]
  5. (art) An inlay of hard stones fixed with mastic on a marble slab; inlaid work.[11][8][5][3]
  6. A decoration made by joining fabrics of different colours.[11]
  • commettere
  • commessa
  • commessura
  • commissione
  • Latin committo

Usage notes

Commesso viaggiatore, a travelling salesman, is now dated.[3][8] Commesso is also the past participle of commettere, as in un errore commesso per distrazione.[11][6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  4. ^ a b c d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  6. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  7. ^ 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
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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 Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1031
  10. ^ a b c d Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  11. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  12. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli