Etymologically
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giudice

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈd͡ʒu.di.t͡ʃe/[1]

Forms

giudice m or f by sense (plural giudici)[1] An older and literary form is iudice;[2][3][1] Old and dialect forms include giodice.[2][3][1] Northern Italian has Venetian zudese and Lombard giüdes.[4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin iūdex (“judge”), from the accusative iūdicem.[5][6][7][1] GDLI calls it a semi-learned word.[3] The word is pan-Romance: French juge (the source of the English judge), Occitan jutge, Catalan jutge, Spanish juez, Portuguese juiz, Romanian jude and Sardinian zùighe.[6][8][1] Meyer-Lübke explains the French form by the influence of the verb juger.[8][4]

The Latin noun is a compound of Latin iūs (“law, right”) and the root of dīcō (“to say, show”), “the one who declares the law”.[5][6][7][9] Isidore of Seville already explained judges as those who “say the law” to the people.[3] De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *jowes-dik- and notes that the ending ⟨-ex⟩ in place of ⟨-ix⟩ is analogical.[10] Devoto points out that it stands to giudicare and giudizio as indice stands to indicare and indizio.[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is in Brunetto Latini, before 1294, for a public official who judges in a court.[5][6][7] Latini's Rettorica speaks of la persona de' giudici, “the person of the judges”, that is, of those before whom one speaks.[3]

Semantic evolution

Guittone d'Arezzo already attacks corrupt judges (Oh non giudici già, ma gioculare!, “Oh, not judges but jesters!”), and Dino Compagni blames i maladetti giudici for twisting the laws.[3] The wider sense, someone who judges people or things by their own choice or by appointment, is in Dante's Convivio of 1304–1308.[5] The plural for the leaders of Israel between Joshua and Samuel is in Cavalca before 1342.[5]

In medieval Sardinia giudice was the title of the ruler of each giudicato, with Latin iudices Sardiniae recorded from 864.[11][7][8] Modern compounds include the giudice popolare, a citizen drawn by lot to sit in the Corte d'Assise (1950), the giudice di pace and, in sport, the giudice di gara and giudice di linea.[5][7][2]

Timeline

  • Before 1294 – Brunetto Latini uses giudice for a judge in a court.[5]
  • 1304–1308 – Dante uses it for anyone who judges.[5]
  • Before 1342 – Domenico Cavalca uses the plural for the Judges of Israel.[5]
  • 14th century – DEI records the title of the rulers of medieval Sardinia.[11]
  • 1893 – The Crusca dictionary records giudici del fatto for lay judges.[5]
  • 1950 – Giudice popolare is recorded.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A judge, a magistrate: a public official who administers justice: Il giudice ha rinviato l'udienza.[7][12][2]
  2. (law) The court or judicial authority competent in a case: giudice di primo grado.[7][12]
  3. Anyone who judges people or things, or who has the authority to give a verdict: Sei un pessimo giudice di cavalli.[7][13][12]
  4. (figurative) What shows the true worth of something: Il pubblico sarà l'unico giudice.[7][13][12]
  5. (sports) A judge or umpire who checks that a competition follows the rules.[7][12][1]
  6. (history) Each of the Judges who led Israel between Joshua and Samuel.[7][12][5]
  7. (history) The ruler of a giudicato in medieval Sardinia.[7][1][11]

Word family

  • giudicessa
  • giudicale
  • giudicare
  • giudicato
  • giudizio
  • giudiziario
  • giure
  • dire
  • Latin iudex
  • French juge

Usage notes

The noun is used for both men and women (il giudice, la giudice); the feminine giudicessa is uncommon or jocular.[12][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  3. ^ a b c d e f Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  4. ^ a b Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
  5. ^ 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
  6. ^ a b c d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  8. ^ a b c Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  9. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  10. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  11. ^ a b c Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1819
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  13. ^ 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