fétiche French · revision 15702

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1605, Pieter de Marees (translation), fetisso|origins=la factīcius}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /fe.tiʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''fétiche''' ''m'' (plural fétiches)^(Wiktionary)

+ ''Fetisso'' (1605), ''fetiche'' (1669).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|pt|feitiço|t=charm, amulet; artificial]] (from the 15th century), first through a translation from Dutch,^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Wiktionary)^(FEW|3, 359a) from [[la|factīcius|t=artificial]], the source of [[factice]].^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(Wiktionary) Compare [[es|hechizo]] in both senses and Old French “faitis” “well made”.^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Littré 1873)

+

+ Littré first tied the Portuguese word to [[fée]], then corrected this in his Supplement.^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The French translation of Pieter de Marees's description of Guinea (1605) speaks of the people's ''Idoles ou Fetissos'', their idols.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ ''Fétiche'' was first the name Europeans gave to the cult objects of the peoples of the West African coast.^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Littré 1873) Charles de Brosses's ''Du culte des dieux fétiches'' (1760) coined ''fétichisme'' for this worship.^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ In the 19th century it came to mean any object thought to bring luck, and figuratively something revered without judgement; in apposition ''numéro fétiche'' is a lucky number.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989)^(Larousse) In psychoanalysis (20th century) a ''fétiche'' is the object of a fetishist's desire, after Alfred Binet's use of ''fétichisme'' for the perversion (1906).^(DHLF 1992) In African French ''faire fétiche'' is to cast spells, and the ''féticheur'' (1893) is a sorcerer.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 15th century – Portuguese ''feitiço'' “spell, amulet”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1605 – ''Fetissos'' “idols”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1669 – ''Fetiche'' (Villault).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1756–1760 – ''Fétichisme'' (de Brosses).^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+ * 1762 – First recorded by the Académie.^(TLFi)

+ * 1893 – ''Féticheur''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1906 – ''Fétichisme'' as a sexual perversion (Binet).^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # An object of worship believed to hold [[m|en|supernatural]] power; a [[m|en|fetish]].^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+ # An object or animal thought to bring luck; a [[m|en|mascot]], [[m|en|talisman]].^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Larousse)

+ # ''(psychology)'' The object of sexual [[m|en|fetishism]].^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Lucky, favourite: ''numéro fétiche''.^(Larousse)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[féticher]]

+ * [[fétichiser]]

+ * [[fétichisme]]

+ * [[fétichiste]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[factice]]

+ * [[la|factīcius]]

+ * [[en|fetish]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}