marche French · revision 16565

+ French has two words spelled ''marche'': the march or border province, from Germanic ''*marka'', and the walk or step, derived from the verb ''marcher''.^(Grand Robert 2005)^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)

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+ {{homograph|1|border province}}

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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1100, Chanson de Roland|origins=frk *marka}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /maʁʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''marche''' ''f'' (plural marches)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The border province is [[bor|frk|*marka|t=boundary, border]], a Germanic word for a sign marking a limit, reconstructed from [[goh|marcha]], [[got|𐌼𐌰𐍂𐌺𐌰|tr=marka]] and [[ang|mearc]].^(Grand Robert 2005)^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi)^(GLLF 1989)^(FEW|16, 522b) From the 8th century Medieval Latin had “marcha”, “marca” “limit, frontier”, and in particular a frontier region under a marquis.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) Littré noted that it is the same word as [[marque]].^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ In the ''Chanson de Roland'' (about 1100) the ''marches'' are the frontier provinces of a state: ''Il est mes fils, et si tiendra mes marches''.^(TLFi)^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Historically it named a military district on the edge of a hostile country, ruled by margraves or marquises, as in ''les marches de Lorraine''; by extension, any border region.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989) In Old French it also meant simply a region, a country (1212).^(DHLF 1992) Its governor was the ''marchis'' (1080–1524), replaced by ''marquis'', borrowed from Italian.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1100 – ''Marches'', ''Chanson de Roland''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1212 – A region, a country.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1225 – ''Marquis'', from Italian.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''(historical)'' A [[m|en|march]], a frontier province or military border district: ''les marches de Lorraine''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(GLLF 1989)

+ # A border region on the edge of a country.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989)

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+ {{homograph|2|walk; step}}

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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=back-formation|attested=c. 1354–60 (step of a stair)|origins=frk *markōn}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /maʁʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''marche''' ''f'' (plural marches)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The walk is a deverbal noun [[der|fr|marcher|t=to walk]].^(Grand Robert 2005)^(GLLF 1989)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Petit Robert 2007) “Marcher” meant “to trample” in Old French, Bloch and Wartburg derive it from [[frk|*markōn|t=to mark, imprint (a footstep)]].^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(FEW|16, 528a)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The concrete sense comes first: about 1360 a ''marche'' is the part of a stair on which the foot is placed; in hunting the ''marches'' are an animal's tracks (1376).^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In the 16th century ''marche'' “stair” supplanted [[degré]].^(DHLF 1992) It also named the treadles of a loom (1514) and the keys of an organ (1547).^(DHLF 1992) The active sense “walking, moving on foot” is found only from 1508, following the change in the verb; it was applied to troops (1611), whence a military march as music (1718).^(DHLF 1992) It named the movement of a group (1690), later a demonstration or procession, such as the March on Rome (1922) or the Long March (1934–35).^(DHLF 1992) The movement of pieces in a game (1718), of a star (1736) and of a ship or vehicle (1798) followed, and figuratively the working of a machine or business: ''en état de marche'', ''la marche des affaires''.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1360 – The step of a stair.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1376 – An animal's tracks.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1508 – The act of walking.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1611 – The march of troops.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1718 – A military march (music).^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1798 – The running of a vehicle.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1932 – Race walking at the Olympic Games.^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Walking: ''faire de la marche'', ''une heure de marche''; a walk.^(Larousse)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[m|en|march]] of troops; a procession, demonstration: ''une marche pour la paix'', ''ouvrir'', ''fermer la marche''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''(music)'' A march: ''marche funèbre''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # The movement, running of a vehicle or machine: ''en marche'', ''marche arrière'', reverse, ''mettre en marche''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # The working, progress of something: ''la marche des affaires'', ''marche à suivre'', the procedure.^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[m|en|step]] of a stair: ''les marches de l'escalier''.^(Wiktionary)^(Larousse)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[marchette]]

+ * [[contremarche]]

+ * [[marchepied]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[marcher]]

+ * [[marquis]]

+ * [[marque]]

+ * [[démarche]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}