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rivolta

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word rivolta

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1374 before 1374, Petrarch More words from the 14th century
Ultimate origins
Proto-Italic *wreLatin *volto
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Italian voltare
Italian rivoltare
Italian rivolta
From the same root
English revolt ← rivoltare
French révolte ← rivoltare

Pronunciation

  • /riˈvɔl.ta/[1]

Forms

rivolta f (plural rivolte)[1]

Etymology

It is a deverbal noun from Italian rivoltare.[2][3][4][5][6][1] Avviamento derives it from the reflexive rivoltarsi.[7] GRADIT instead derives it from rivolto, the past participle of rivolgere, under which DELI also lists it.[8][9]

The verb is formed with ri- from voltare.[2][1] DIFIT lists French révolte (about 1500) as a possible Italianism, but the French dictionaries it quotes derive the French noun from the verb révolter (1501).[10]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is Petrarch's rivolta d'occhi, “a turn of the eyes”, in the Canzoniere (before 1374): the act of turning oneself or one's gaze the other way.[9][8][5][11]

Semantic evolution

The old senses kept the idea of turning: a winding of a rope round a winch drum in Galileo, a bend of a road or river, and the turned-back part of a garment, such as the cuff of a sleeve.[11][12][5] Tasso wrote of a torrent that “turns upon itself with a thousand very rapid bends” (con mille rapidissime rivolte).[12]

The political sense, “a sudden rebellion with riots”, is first recorded in Guicciardini, before 1540, and mettersi in rivolta in Daniello Bartoli in 1677.[9][10] The reflexive verb rivoltarsi had meant “to organise an uprising” since the second half of the 13th century.[9] By extension rivolta came to mean an open rejection of a norm, a fashion or a cultural order, as in la rivolta romantica against classicism.[8][4][6] In Italian military law it names a crime of four or more armed soldiers refusing an order, and in the navigation code the gravest form of mutiny.[12]

Timeline

  • Before 1374 – Petrarch writes rivolta d'occhi.[9][8]
  • Before 1540 – Guicciardini uses rivolta for a rebellion.[9][10]
  • 1677 – Mettersi in rivolta is recorded in Daniello Bartoli.[9]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A revolt, rebellion, insurrection: a collective, often violent movement against the established order: i soldati repressero la rivolta.[8][3][4][1]
  2. (by extension) Open rejection of a moral, cultural or artistic order: una rivolta contro le regole dell'accademia.[8][4][6]
  3. (law) The military offence of four or more soldiers on armed duty who refuse an order or take up arms; in the navigation code, the gravest form of mutiny.[6][12]
  4. (literary, archaic) A turning of oneself or of the eyes the other way.[8][3][4]
  5. (archaic) A sharp bend of a road or river.[8][3][6]
  6. (archaic) The turned-back part of a garment, a risvolto or cuff.[8][3][5]

Word family

  • rivoltoso
  • rivoltina

Usage notes

In rivolta means “in revolt”, of a town, a people or an army.[6][12] Rivolta is also the feminine of the participle rivolto and a form of the verb rivoltare.[4][13] The GDLI records a disused rivolta for a pistol with revolving barrels, whose diminutive is rivoltella.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  3. ^ 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
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  6. ^ a b c d e f Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  7. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  10. ^ a b c Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
  11. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  12. ^ a b c d e Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
  13. ^ Wikizionario (Italian Wiktionary), it.wiktionary.org
  14. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
Cite this entry

“Rivolta.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/it/rivolta. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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