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pazzia

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word pazzia

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1268 Andrea da Grosseto, Tuscan More words from the 13th century
Ultimate origins
Latin *pactioItalian -ia
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Italian pazzo
Italian pazzia
From the same root
Italian impazzire ← pazzo
Italian pazzesco ← pazzo
Italian strapazzare ← pazzo

Pronunciation

  • /patˈt͡si.a/[1]

Forms

pazzia f (plural pazzie)[1] Early forms include Old Italian pazia, paccia and passia.[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from Italian pazzo + -ia.[4][5][2][6][1]

The adjective's own origin is uncertain.[4][1] DELI reviews and rejects several proposals: Latin patiēns (“suffering”), a link with pupazzo, and a source in Vulgar Latin *pactiare.[4] Nocentini favours this last etymon, read as “to squeeze, beat”: a madman would be one who has had a knock on the head, as with picchiato and tocco.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the Tuscan writings of Andrea da Grosseto, 1268.[2] DELI's earliest dated sense is “an extravagant act” (Giordano da Pisa, before 1311), and “madness” follows in P. Tedaldi before 1353.[4][5] The GDLI quotes Tedaldi: non so se dico pazzia o amore (“I do not know whether to call it madness or love”).[8]

Semantic evolution

In Old Italian the word covered folly and reckless daring, the frenzy of love, mystical rapture and fury, as well as a mad act;[2] fare pazzie was to behave like a madman.[2] Boccaccio wrote of Brutus laying aside his feigned madness, la simulata pazzia.[8] Tommaseo quotes the proverb se la pazzía fusse un dolore, in ogni casa si sentirebbe stridere (“if madness were a pain, you would hear screaming in every house”).[9]

In the 19th century French physicians spoke of pazzia ereditaria, but medicine now prefers infermità mentale or the names of specific psychoses.[10][8] In everyday Italian the word lives on for mental illness and, more often, for a rash act or wild expense.[5][11] In the south it also means a game or joke.[12]

Timeline

  • 1268 – Andrea da Grosseto uses the word in Tuscany.[2]
  • Before 1311 – Giordano da Pisa uses it for an extravagant act.[4][5]
  • Before 1353 – P. Tedaldi uses it for madness.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. madness, insanity: the loss of reason through severe mental illness: nei suoi occhi c’erano segni di pazzia.[5][11][6]
  2. (loosely) Any mental illness or psychosis.[5][11]
  3. A mad act or crazy behaviour: temevano che commettesse una pazzia.[5][11][13]
  4. (extended) A rash or foolish act, an extravagance, a reckless expense: comprare quella barca è stata una pazzia.[5][11][14]
  5. (southern regional) A game or joke.[12]

Usage notes

Avere un ramo di pazzia is to be eccentric, and fare pazzie is to act wildly, also out of love.[12][14][6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  3. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  4. ^ a b c d e f Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  6. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  7. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  8. ^ a b c Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 12, 886
  9. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  10. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
  11. ^ a b c d e Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  12. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  13. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  14. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
Cite this entry

“Pazzia.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/it/pazzia. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·