lampada

Forms

lampada f (plural lampade)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Late Latin lampada (“lamp, torch”), recorded in the old Latin Bible, for classical Latin lampas, a word taken from Greek.^[2][3][4] The Late Latin form is the Greek accusative Ancient Greek λαμπάδα (lampáda), reinterpreted as a nominative in late Latin.^[3][1] Greek λαμπάς (lampás, “torch”) is a derivative of λάμπω (lámpō, “to shine”), also the source of lampo and lanterna.^[3][5] GDLI calls the Italian word a learned one.^[6]

Related forms in other languages are French lampe and Spanish lámpara.^[3] The southern lampara continues the Greek accusative with the Greek stress and with the ⟨d⟩ turned into ⟨r⟩.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the Milanese poems of Bonvesin de la Riva in the late 13th century, for an artificial light burning oil or another fuel.^[7] The Tuscan form lampana is recorded in 1296, and lampada for an oil lamp in the Italian Gregory the Great of the 14th century.^[2]

Semantic evolution

Old Italian forms include lampana, lampade, lampeda and lanpada.^[7] Already in the early texts the lamp stood for a flame, a sudden flash, the Sun (lampada del sole) and the Moon, and figuratively for a moral guide;^[7][4] Ariosto calls the stars the lampade that heaven leads.^[7][4] Prati describes the old lampada as an oil lamp shaped like a jar, usually hung before altars.^[8]

The general sense of an artificial light source of any fuel is recorded before 1498 in Savonarola.^[2][6] The miner's lampada di sicurezza is recorded in 1833, the quartz lamp giving ultraviolet rays in 1932, and the burner used to solder or heat in 1957.^[2] Lampadina, recorded as a small lamp in 1891, became the electric light bulb in 1918.^[2] The 2009 GDLI supplement adds the tanning lamp and farsi la lampada, to tan under one.^[6]

Timeline

• Late 13th century – Bonvesin de la Riva uses lampada.^[7]
• 1296 – The form lampana is recorded.^[2]
• Before 1498 – Savonarola uses lampada for a light source in general.^[2][6]
• Before 1712 – Lampadario is recorded in Magalotti.^[2]
• 1833 – Lampada di sicurezza, the miner's lamp, is recorded.^[2]
• 1918 – Lampadina is recorded for the electric bulb.^[2]
• 1932 – The quartz lamp giving ultraviolet rays is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A lamp: a fixed or portable device holding a source of artificial light, for lighting rooms or outdoor spaces: Spegni la lampada sul comodino.^{[4][9][10][1]}
2. The light source itself, such as an electric bulb.^[4][9]
3. A lamp burning before an altar, a tomb or a holy image: lampada votiva.^[11]
4. A tanning lamp;^[4][12][6] farsi la lampada, to tan under one.^[4][12][6]
5. A burner using gas or spirit to heat, solder, or cook dishes flambé at the table.^[4][10][11]
6. (literary) A star.^[4]
7. (figurative) A moral guide, a model to follow.^[4][10][7]

Word family

• lampadina
• lampadario
• lampara
• lampadaio

Related words

• lampa
• lampione
• lampo
• lanterna
• Latin lampas

Usage notes

Lampade is an old and literary singular, and lampana a Tuscan and literary variant.^[9][11] DEI lists a Cilento lampada “mussel”, from Latin lepas reshaped after lampada, and a slang lampada “glass of wine”.^[13]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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 h i j De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
6. ^ 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
7. ^ a b c d e f Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
8. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti, p. 573
9. ^ 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
10. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
11. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
12. ^ a b Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
13. ^ Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 2156