femme French · revision 16306

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=late 10th century, Passion de Clermont|origins=la femina}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /fam/^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA (Louisiana): [fɑ̃m]^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''femme''' ''f'' (plural femmes)^(Wiktionary)

+ Old French [[m|fro|fame]], [[m|fro|feme]], [[m|fro|fenme]], [[m|fro|femme]].^(Wiktionary)^(AND)

+ The Old French pronunciation [fɛ̃mə] became [fãmə] by the lowering of nasal vowels and then [famə] in Middle French, with loss of nasality before /m/.^(Wiktionary)^(Grand Robert 2005)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|fro|feme]], [[inh|la|fēmina|t=female; woman, wife]].^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)^(FEW|3, 449a) “Fēmina” was originally a passive present participle meaning “she who is suckled, who gives suck”, from an Indo-European root meaning “to suck”, also found in [[m|la|fellō|t=to suck]] and [[m|la|fēlīx|t=happy]], Wiktionary gives the reconstruction [[ine-pro|*dʰeh₁-m̥h₁n-éh₂|t=nursing]], from [[m|ine-pro|*dʰeh₁(y)-|t=to suck]].^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ In Gaul “fēmina” took the senses “woman” and “wife”, displacing [[la|mulier|t=woman]], which survives in [[it|moglie]] and [[es|mujer]] and gave Old French [[m|fro|moillier|t=wife]] (until the 14th century), and [[m|la|uxor|t=wife]], which gave the rare Old French [[m|fro|oissour]] (until the early 13th century).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989) Elsewhere the word kept the sense “female”: [[it|femmina]], [[es|hembra]] and [[pt|fêmea]].^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+

+ Cognate with [[nrf|fame]], [[pcd|fanme]], [[frp|fèna]] and [[oc|femna]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ It is first found in the ''Passion de Clermont'' (late 10th century) meaning “a female human being”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The sense “wife” is found by 1080 in the ''Chanson de Roland'': ''ne reverrunt lor mere ne lor femme'' “they will not see their mothers or their wives again”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) The word is also applied to a female animal (1829), and in slang to a mistress or sexual partner.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ Many phrases reflect women's place in society: ''bonne femme'' (1668), once “a kind woman” or “an old woman”, became in 1926 slang a familiar, rather pejorative word for a woman or wife, ''femme de chambre'' and ''femme de charge'' (1680), ''femme de ménage'' (1835), ''maîtresse femme'' (1865), ''femme de lettres'' (1872) and ''femme-objet'' (about 1960) followed.^(DHLF 1992) Belgian French says ''femme d'ouvrage'' for a cleaning woman, and African French ''femme libre'' for an unmarried woman.^(DHLF 1992) Anglo-Norman law used ''feme covert'' for a married woman and ''feme sole'' for a single woman or widow.^(AND)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Late 10th century – ''Femme'' in the ''Passion de Clermont''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1080 – “Wife”, in the ''Chanson de Roland''.^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)

+ * 14th century – Last uses of Old French ''moillier'' “wife”.^(TLFi)

+ * 1668 – ''Bonne femme''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1680 – ''Femme de chambre''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1835 – ''Femme de ménage''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1872 – ''Femme de lettres''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * c. 1960 – ''Femme-objet''.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[m|en|woman]], an adult female human being.^(Le Robert)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[m|en|wife]]: ''sa femme et ses enfants''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # In phrases naming occupations: ''femme de ménage'' (cleaning woman), ''femme de chambre'' (chambermaid).^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''Bonne femme'': ''(familiar)'' a woman, a wife.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # ''Être (très) femme'': to have the qualities attributed to women.^(Larousse)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[meuf]]

+ * [[sage-femme]]

+ * [[femmelette]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[femelle]]

+ * [[féminin]]

+ * [[la|fēmina]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}