dumo

Forms

dumo m (plural dumi)^[1]

Etymology

It is learned: it is borrowed from Latin dūmus (“thornbush”).^[2][3][4][5]

The Latin word had an older form dusmus: Livius Andronicus used it as an adjective, glossed as dūmōsus (“bushy”).^[6][1][7] De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *dū̆smo- and compares Old Irish dos (“shrub”), a Latin–Irish correspondence with no further connections.^[6][1] The OLD and Wiktionary add Middle High German zūsach (“thicket”).^[7][1] Zingarelli calls the origin uncertain.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the poems of Nicolò de' Rossi, from the first decades of the 14th century, with the plural dumi, thorny bushes.^[8] GRADIT dates the word from Petrarch, before 1374.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The word has stayed in poetry.^[4][9] Petrarch lists among the places Love made him seek deserti paesi, / fiere e ladri rapaci, ispidi dumi (“deserted lands, wild beasts and rapacious thieves, bristling thornbushes”).^[4][9] GDLI follows it through Boiardo, Lorenzo de' Medici, Tasso, Marino, Metastasio and Leopardi.^[4] Tommaseo noted that in his time it was used only in verse.^[9]

Timeline

• Early 14th century – Nicolò de' Rossi uses the plural dumi.^[8]
• Before 1374 – Petrarch writes ispidi dumi.^[5][4]
• 15th century – The adjective dumoso is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. (literary) A thornbush; a pruno, rovo, bramble.^{[5][10][3][11]}

Word family

• dumoso
• dumeto

Related words

• Latin dūmus
• Latin dūmētum

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1401
3. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b c d e Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
5. ^ a b c d De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
6. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
7. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
9. ^ a b c Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
10. ^ Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
11. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)