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perdono

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word perdono

Confidence
Established
Formation
Back-formation
First attested
13th century, Monte Andrea
Ultimate origin
Latin dōnō

Pronunciation

  • /perˈdo.no/[1]

Forms

perdono m (plural perdoni)[1] GDLI records the old forms par dono and perduono.[2]

Etymology

It is a back-formation from perdonare (“to forgive”).[3][4][5][6][1] GDLI compares French pardon, recorded in 1135.[2] The verb is Late Latin perdōnāre (“to grant, to forgive”), Medieval Latin for DELI and GRADIT, who explain it as classical condōnō (“to give up, remit”) with a change of prefix;[3][5] Nocentini derives it from dōnō (“to give”) with per-.[4]

The same verb is French pardonner, Occitan perdonar, Catalan perdonar, Spanish perdonar and Portuguese perdoar, each with its noun formed in the same way: Spanish perdón, Portuguese perdão.[4][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is in Monte Andrea, in the 13th century, in the sense “forgiveness of a fault and of its punishment”.[3][5] The poet writes S'aggio fallato, sol me ne ripilglio: / di ciò non chero perdon né merzede (“If I have done wrong, I blame only myself: for it I ask neither pardon nor mercy”).[2]

Semantic evolution

In Dante's Purgatorio the Pierides felt a blow tal, che disperar perdono (“such that they despaired of pardon”).[2] By 1300 the word also meant the indulgence the Church granted to those who visited certain shrines, and the place where it was granted;[3] the best known is the Perdono d'Assisi.[8][9] In Tuscany a perdono is also a village feast.[8] Tasso uses it for a polite “excuse” (before 1595), as in today's chiedo perdono.[3][10]

In law perdono giudiziale is a judge's pardon for a minor, which extinguishes a minor offence.[8][9] German borrowed the word as Perdon in 1596, and used it until the 18th century beside the French Pardon.[11]

Timeline

  • 13th century – Monte Andrea uses perdono.[3][5]
  • 1300 – A Cavalcanti document records the sense “indulgence” and the place where it is granted.[3]
  • Before 1595 – Tasso uses it for “excuse”.[3]
  • 1596 – German Perdon is recorded.[11]

Meanings

Noun

  1. forgiveness, pardon: giving up revenge or punishment towards someone who has done wrong: Le ha chiesto perdono in ginocchio.[5][8][9][1]
  2. (law) Remission of a penalty, by an act of clemency, perdono giudiziale, a judicial pardon for a minor.[5][8][9]
  3. (religion) The remission of sins granted by God; an indulgence granted by the Church, and the place where it is granted.[5][8][9]
  4. (regional, Tuscany) A village feast.[8]
  5. In polite formulas, an apology, excuse: Chiedo perdono, ho sbagliato porta.[5][8][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  4. ^ a b c Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  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. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  7. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  10. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  11. ^ a b Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
Cite this entry

“Perdono.” Etymologically, 22 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/perdono. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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