Etymologically
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tribunale

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 21 October 2026 at 21:23. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • /tri.buˈna.le/[1]

Forms

tribunale m (plural tribunali)[1]

Etymology

It is a learned borrowed from Latin tribūnal (“raised platform for magistrates”), originally the place where the tribunes sat.[2][3][4][5] The Latin noun is the neuter of a supposed adjective *tribūnālis (“of the tribunes”), from tribūnus (“tribune”), itself from tribus (“tribe”).[1][6][7] Latin also had the nominative tribunale, recorded in an inscription, which Quintilian thought pedantic.[6] DEI compares Old French tribunal (13th century).[5] It belongs to the same family as tribuna and tribuno.[8][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

DEI's first record is Cino da Pistoia (14th century), who imagines Love bringing a thousand complaints before the tribunal of a high empress.[5][9] DELI dates the sense “place where judges administer justice” to Boccaccio's Decameron (1348–1353): “the judges have left the tribunali”.[2][4][10]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century the word could also mean a stage (Berni) or a tribune (Guicciardini).[5] An old adjective tribunale “of a tribune” is recorded in a 14th-century sermon translation (sedia tribunale, the judgement seat) and in the Anonimo romano's corona tribunale.[9][4]

Figurative uses grew in religious prose: Paolo Segneri (1686) has tribunale di Dio, tribunale divino and tribunale del cielo, and tribunale della confessione or della penitenza for the sacrament is recorded in 1805.[2] DELI dates tribunale di cassazione to 1799 and the modern sense, the judicial body that hears civil and criminal cases, to 1875.[2] Today there are many named courts: tribunale per i minorenni, tribunale militare, tribunale amministrativo regionale (TAR), tribunale della libertà.[10][8][11] In the textile trade a tribunale is a bench for checking finished cloth.[10]

Timeline

  • 14th century – Cino da Pistoia uses tribunale.[5]
  • 1348–1353 – Boccaccio uses it for the place where judges sit.[2]
  • 16th century – Berni uses it for a stage, Guicciardini for a tribune.[5]
  • 1686 – Paolo Segneri speaks of the tribunale di Dio.[2]
  • 1799 – Tribunale di cassazione is recorded.[2]
  • 1805 – Tribunale della confessione is recorded.[2]
  • 1829 – Tribunalesco is recorded.[5]
  • 1875 – Tribunale is recorded for the judicial body.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. court: the authority that administers justice; in the Italian system, the court that judges civil and criminal cases at first instance and on appeal: Il tribunale ha respinto il ricorso.[10][8][12]
  2. courthouse, the building where the courts sit: Ci vediamo davanti al tribunale alle nove.[10][8][12]
  3. courtroom, the hall where trials are held.[10][7]
  4. (figurative) An authority to which one answers morally, such as conscience, history or public opinion.[10][12][11]
  5. (textiles) A bench for checking pieces of cloth after finishing.[10]

Word family

  • tribunalesco
  • tribunalizio
  • tribunesco
  • tribuno
  • tribuna
  • Latin tribūnal
  • French tribunal

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  3. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ 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
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3892
  6. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  8. ^ a b c d 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 Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  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 Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  12. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse