raccolto

Forms

raccolto (feminine raccolta, masculine plural raccolti, feminine plural raccolte)^[1]

Etymology

It is from Italian raccogliere (“to gather, collect”), its past participle, used as an adjective and, since the 16th century, as a noun.^[2][3][4] Wiktionary derives it directly from Latin recollectus,^[1] a form Tommaseo found in Seneca and Justinian.^[5]

Nocentini forms the verb with the prefix ri- on accogliere (“to receive; to gather”).^[3] DELI allows also a Vulgar Latin *accolligere strengthened with re-, following the LEI.^[2] The LEI holds that this compound of colligō (“to gather”) was formed in Latin times and continues in French accueillir, Catalan acullir, Spanish acoger and Portuguese acolher.^[6] The Latin verb is formed from legō (“to gather; to choose”) with the prefix con-.^[3] Speakers analyse the verb as the prefix ⟨ra-⟩ and cogliere, as Bembo already did when he listed it with words that double the consonant after ⟨ra-⟩.^[2]

In Old Florentine the only form was Old Italian ricogliere.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is figurative: “dignified, composed”, in Petrarca, who died in 1374.^[2] Tommaseo quotes a sonnet: Veggiola in sè raccolta, e sì romita (“I see her so gathered into herself and so withdrawn”).^[5]

Semantic evolution

Dante already describes souls lying on their backs and one sitting tutta raccolta, huddled up.^[7][8] The noun for the harvest appears first in the plural ricolti in Sercambi, about 1400, and as raccolto in Roseo, before about 1580.^[2] Bembo used it for the time of the harvest, putting off a visit until after the raccolto.^[5]

Later senses describe places, well arranged and quiet (1872, Tommaseo–Bellini), and feelings held in check (1891, Petrocchi); the literal “picked up from the ground” is recorded in 1737.^[2] DEI records a 19th-century riding term, a shortened sideways pace of the horse, which passed into French.^[9] The noun also came to mean the sum gathered by a collection, especially for charity.^[10][4]

Timeline

• Before 1374 – Petrarca uses raccolto “composed, dignified”.^[2]
• About 1400 – Sercambi has the plural ricolti “harvests”.^[2]
• Before about 1580 – Roseo uses the noun raccolto for the harvest.^[2]
• 1737 – Campailla uses it for “picked up from the ground”.^[2]
• 1872 – Tommaseo–Bellini record it for a quiet, well-arranged place.^[2]
• 1891 – Petrocchi records it for restrained feelings.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Curled up, huddled: Il cane dormiva raccolto davanti al camino.^{[10][4][11][12]}
2. Held together, gathered: Portava i capelli raccolti in una treccia.^[10][11][13]
3. (figurative) absorbed in thought, concentrated: Ascoltava raccolto, senza dire una parola.^[10][4][11]
4. (figurative) composed, dignified; of a feeling, restrained.^[13][4][11]
5. Of a place, secluded and quiet: Cenammo in una saletta raccolta.^[10][4][11]

Noun

1. The harvest, crop: the produce gathered from a crop, or from all crops in a year: Quest'anno il raccolto delle mele è stato scarso.^{[10][4][11][12]}
2. The harvest time: Ci rivedremo a raccolto finito.^[10][4][12]
3. The proceeds of a collection, especially for charity.^[10][4][11]

Word family

• raccoltamente

Related words

• raccogliere
• raccolta
• accogliere
• cogliere
• raccoglimento

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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 Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b c Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
6. ^ Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 1, 294
7. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
8. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
9. ^ Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3190
10. ^ 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
11. ^ a b c d e f g Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
12. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
13. ^ a b Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli