jais French · revision 15756

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=first half of the 12th century, Anglo-Norman lapidaries, jaiet|origins=grc γαγάτης}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ʒɛ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''jais''' ''m'' (invariable)^(Wiktionary)

+ ''Jaiet'' (12th century, until the 18th), ''gest'' (1260), ''geais'' (1611), ''jais'' (1669); also ''jai'' (Volney, 1791).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a contraction of Old French [[m|fro|jaiet]],^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Grand Robert 2005) which is [[inh|la|gagātēs|alt=gagātem|t=jet]], the accusative of “gagātēs” (Pliny),^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Wiktionary)^(FEW|4, 21a) from [[grc|γαγάτης|tr=gagátēs]], literally “stone of Gagas”, a town and river of Lycia.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Wiktionary) The regular French form would have been “*jaié”, changed to “jaiet” by a swap of suffix; the final “s” is an arbitrary spelling.^(TLFi)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(GLLF 1989) Old French also borrowed the learned “gagatès”.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The Anglo-Norman lapidaries (first half of the 12th century) describe ''jaiet'', the black mineral.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The guild statutes of the ''Livre des métiers'' (1260) speak of makers of rosaries ''d'ambre et de gest''.^(Littré 1873)^(TLFi) The hard, shining black lignite was used for jewellery, mourning buttons and inlay, and also from 1690 ''jais'' also named black glass or black-enamelled metal imitating it, ''jais artificiel'' or ''faux jais''.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ''Noir comme jais'' is found from about 1510 (''noir comme jayet'') and 1690, ''noir de jais'' from 1803–1808 and ''de jais'' from 1833: ''des cheveux de jais'', jet-black hair.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007) The word is often confused with its homophone [[geai]] in metaphors.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * first half of the 12th century – ''Jaiet''.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1260 – ''Gest'' (''Livre des métiers'').^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ * c. 1510 – ''Noir comme jayet'' (Lemaire de Belges).^(TLFi)

+ * 1611 – ''Geais'' (Cotgrave).^(TLFi)^(Grand Robert 2005)

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

+ * 1690 – Black glass imitating jet^(TLFi); ''noir comme jais'' (Furetière).^(TLFi)

+ * 1808 – ''Noir de jais''.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|jet|alt=Jet]], a hard, shining black variety of [[m|en|lignite]] used in jewellery.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Larousse)

+ # ''Jais artificiel'', ''faux jais'': black glass or enamelled metal imitating jet.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(TLFi)

+ # ''(Noir) de jais'': jet-black: ''des cheveux de jais''.^(Larousse)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[jayet]]

+ * [[en|jet]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}