marrobbio

Forms

marrobbio m (plural marrobbi)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Sicilian marrubbiu, a Sicilian word of unknown origin.^{[2][3][4][5][1]} Battisti–Alessio record it beside Sicilian marròbbiu “hurricane” and marrùbbia “flood tide”.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The word is first recorded in Italian in 1937, for a quick, small rise and fall of the sea along the Sicilian coast.^[2][3][4]

Semantic evolution

The word stayed a regional term of Sicily and of oceanography.^[2][3][6] The GDLI quotes a Dizionario di marina that describes it as vibrations of the sea lasting a few minutes on the Sicilian coasts, and notes that it is frequent at Mazara del Vallo, near Trapani and near Avola.^[7] Treccani compares it to the seiche, sessa, of lakes and inland seas, and to the empifondo of the coast of Livorno.^[5] English Wiktionary glosses it as a meteotsunami.^[1]

Timeline

• 1937 – Marrobbio is first recorded in Italian.^[2][3][4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (regional, Sicily) A rapid, slight change in the level of the sea near the coast, caused by wind or by atmospheric pressure; a meteotsunami: Il marrobbio ha allagato il porto per qualche minuto.^{[2][3][4][5][1]}

Usage notes

Marrobbio is also a variant of marrubio, the plant horehound (Marrubium vulgare).^[2][3] This word comes from Latin marrubium, of uncertain origin,^[8][9] and it is recorded from the 14th century in forms such as marrobio and marobbio.^[10][6] Wiktionary gives the variant marrùbbio for the sea phenomenon.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
3. ^ 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
4. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
5. ^ a b c 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 Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 2373
7. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 9
8. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
9. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it