epoca

Forms

epoca f (plural epoche)^[1]

Etymology

It is a learned word, borrowed from Ancient Greek ἐποχή (epokhḗ, “stop, suspension”).^[2][3][4] The Greek noun is from ἐπέχω (epékhō, “to hold back, check”), formed from ἐπί (epí, “upon”) and ἔχω (ékhō, “to have, hold”).^[2][5][6] In astronomy it named the point where a star seems to halt at its apogee, fixed as a starting point for reckoning a cycle, and then the period itself.^[2][3] Pianigiani derived it through Latin epocha.^[7][8]

The GDLI notes that the word entered the languages of Europe in the 17th century and spread in the 18th; it compares English epoch (1614) and French époque (1637), from which the Italian senses descend.^[9] The phrase fare epoca is a calque of French faire époque, recorded in 1762.^[2][10] The philosophical epochè, the suspension of judgement, is the same Greek word.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is Daniello Bartoli, before 1685, in astronomy: the moment from which the mean longitude of a heavenly body is reckoned.^[2] GRADIT gives the same date, and Zingarelli an earlier one, 1546.^[4][11]

Semantic evolution

In the 18th century the word passed from astronomy to history: the fourth Crusca dictionary (1731) has a long historical period marked by its main events, and Eustachio Manfredi defines it as the notable point from which a people count their years.^[2][9] The looser sense “time, period” is recorded from 1800, in the Milanese press and in Alfieri, and the geological epoch, a division of a period, from 1819.^[2]

In modern use d'epoca means “period, antique” (furniture, cars, costumes), all'epoca means “at the time”, and something that fa epoca is memorable.^[11][12][6] The adjective epocale, “epoch-making”, is recorded from 1965.^[3]

Timeline

• 1546 – First record according to Zingarelli.^[11]
• Before 1685 – Daniello Bartoli uses epoca in astronomy.^[2]
• 1731 – The fourth Crusca dictionary records the historical sense.^[2]
• 1762 – French faire époque, the model of fare epoca, is recorded.^[2]
• 1800 – The sense “time, period” appears in the Milanese press.^[2]
• 1819 – The geological sense is recorded.^[2]
• 1965 – Epocale is first recorded.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. An era, a historical period marked by particular events or developments: Il castello fu costruito in epoca normanna.^[4][10][13]
2. Time, period; a particular time in someone's life: All'epoca lavoravo ancora a Torino.^[4][10][11]
3. A date taken as the start of a new era; in astronomy, the instant from which a quantity varying in time is reckoned.^[4][12]
4. (geology) An epoch, a division of a geological period.^[4][10][13]
5. (commerce) The date from which interest or a term is calculated.^[4][10][12]

Word family

• epocale
• d'epoca

Related words

• epochè
• era
• Ancient Greek ἐποχή (epokhḗ)
• French époque

Usage notes

Set phrases are fare epoca (to be memorable, epoch-making), d'epoca (period, vintage: auto d'epoca) and dell'epoca (of that time).^[10][11][12]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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 Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
6. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
7. ^ Wikizionario (Italian Wiktionary), it.wiktionary.org
8. ^ Pianigiani, Ottorino (1907), Vocabolario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2 vols., Roma / Milano: Albrighi, Segati
9. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 5, 206
10. ^ a b c d e f Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
11. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
12. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
13. ^ a b Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse