Etymologically
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domna

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 23 October 2026 at 15:10. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈdɔm.na][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈdɔm.na][1]

Forms

domna f (genitive domnae, masculine domnus); first declension[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin domina (“mistress, lady”), with syncope of the unstressed vowel.[1][2] It became Italian donna (“woman”),[3] and in Catalan documents it appears beside the Romance title ⟨na⟩.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLL lists the spelling ⟨domn-⟩ for domina in a number of inscriptions in the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum.[5]

Semantic evolution

Gaffiot records it in Venantius Fortunatus' poems.[2] Wiktionary notes that the syncopated form was widely used in Vulgar, Late and Medieval Latin, for a lady or a mistress.[1] In Catalan charters domna, dompna or donna is a title of respect placed before a woman's name, as in a donation of 887.[4]

Timeline

  • Imperial period – The spelling ⟨domn-⟩ in inscriptions.[5]
  • 6th century AD – Venantius Fortunatus, Carmina 8.18.[2]
  • 887 – A Catalan charter uses donna as a title before a name.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin, Medieval Latin) A lady, mistress.[1][2]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A title of respect before a woman's name.[4]

Usage notes

Georges, the MLW and the Polish medieval dictionary treat domna under domina.[6][7][8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  3. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d Glossarium Mediae Latinitatis Cataloniae (1960–; online ed. 2025), Barcelona: CSIC / Institució Milà i Fontanals, gmlc.imf.csic.es
  5. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  6. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  7. ^ Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  8. ^ Lexicon mediae et infimae Latinitatis Polonorum (1953–), Kraków: Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN; electronic ed. elexicon.scriptores.pl