da Italian · revision 37484

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=10th century, Glossario di Monza|origins=la dē, la ab}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /da/^(Wiktionary)

+ * Tuscany, traditional: /da/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''da'''^(Wiktionary)

+ With the definite article it forms ''dal'', ''dallo'', ''dalla'', ''dai'', ''dagli'' and ''dalle''.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010) Old Italian forms include ''dad'' before a vowel, and in old spelling the consonant of a following pronoun was doubled, as in ''dallui''.^(TLIO)^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) The old Logudorese forms are ''dava'' and ''dave''.^(DEI|1201)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|dē|t=from, down from]] joined to [[m|la|ab|t=from, away from]], prepositions that both expressed motion away from a place.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(LEI|1, 1)^(TLIO)^(GRADIT 2003) Nocentini sees in it the strengthening of short prepositions that is common in the Romance languages.^(Nocentini 2010) The LEI explains it by the weakening of the separative sense of “ab” in Late Latin, after it had merged in sound with [[m|la|ad|t=to]] in about the 6th century, and compares the strengthening of [[m|la|ex|t=out of]] with “dē” in Gaul and Hispania.^(LEI|1, 1)

+

+ The combination is written in Latin texts long before Italian ones: DELI finds it in a document of 720 at Lucca,^(DELI 1999) DEI cites Medieval Latin ⟨da⟩ in Italy in 822 and ⟨daba⟩ in 974,^(DEI|1201) and the LEI cites ⟨de ab⟩ in an 8th-century manuscript of the Formulae Andecavenses and ⟨dab⟩ at Teramo in 991.^(LEI|1, 1) The old Logudorese [[m|sc|dabe]] and [[m|sc|dave]] keep the ⟨b⟩, while Italian ⟨da⟩ goes back to a form without it, in the same way that Sardinian ⟨ave⟩ stands beside Italian [[a]].^(LEI|1, 1)^(Nocentini 2010) The same preposition is [[sc|dae]] and [[rm|da]].^(REW 1935)^(LEI|1, 1)

+

+ Diez proposed Latin “dē” with “ad” instead, and Gabrielli gives both bases.^(TLIO)^(Gabrielli 2020) The TLIO rejects this, since it does not account for the meanings of the preposition and has no support in dialect or documentary evidence,^(TLIO) but Nocentini accepts a later and more local fusion of “dē” and “ad”, which gave a variant [[roa-oit|dad]] that merged with ⟨da⟩.^(Nocentini 2010) Wiktionary derives the sense “at someone's place” from [[m|la|unde|t=whence]] with “ad”,^(Wiktionary) and Devoto explains the uses in ⟨casa da affittare⟩ “house to let” as a crossing of [[di]] and ⟨a⟩.^(Devoto 1968|129) Latin “dē” goes back through [[itc-pro|*dē|t=from]] to [[ine-pro|*déh₁|t=towards]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The TLIO's earliest Italian record is the 10th-century Glossario di Monza.^(TLIO) In a running text the LEI's first example is the Umbrian confession formula of about 1080, where the preposition marks motion from a place.^(LEI|1, 1)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The sense of origin and derivation is recorded from 1249 in Pier della Vigna.^(LEI|1, 1) The senses of rest and motion at or to a place, as in ''stava da sua madre'' “he was at his mother's” and ''andava da sua madre'' “he went to his mother's”, came from the verbs of motion that the preposition followed;^(Nocentini 2010) the LEI notes that at first they were limited to northern Italy and Tuscany, and treats them as a secondary type.^(LEI|1, 1) Before modern surnames, ''da'' with a place of birth served as a name, as in Leonardo da Vinci.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ With an infinitive, ''da'' came to express purpose, fitness and necessity (''cose da fare'' “things to do”), and with a noun the quality or use of something.^(TLIO)^(GRADIT 2003) In the 20th century ''da'' with a name became the usual sign of a restaurant or bar (''Da Massimo''); Marino Moretti recalled that teachers took it for a Gallicism modelled on [[fr|chez]].^(GDLI) Compounds such as ''dabbene'' and ''dabbasso'' grew out of phrases with ''da''.^(Devoto 1968|129)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 720 – The combination is written in a Latin document from Lucca.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 822 – Medieval Latin ''da'' is recorded in Italy.^(DEI|1201)

+ * 974 – Medieval Latin ''daba'' is recorded.^(DEI|1201)

+ * 991 – ''Dab'' appears in a Latin text from Teramo.^(LEI|1, 1)

+ * 10th century – The Glossario di Monza has ''da''.^(TLIO)

+ * c. 1080 – The Umbrian confession formula uses ''da'' for motion from a place.^(LEI|1, 1)

+ * 1249 – Pier della Vigna uses ''da'' for origin and derivation.^(LEI|1, 1)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Preposition===

+ # [[m|en|from]], marking motion from a place: ''È appena tornato da Parigi.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # From, of origin or source: ''Ho saputo la notizia da un collega.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # From, of separation or distance: ''Abita a dieci chilometri dal mare.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # From, with ''a'', marking the start of a passage or range: ''da lunedì a venerdì''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+ # [[m|en|since]], for, of time: ''Studio l'inglese da tre anni.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)^(Wiktionary)

+ # [[m|en|by]], introducing the agent or cause with a passive verb: ''Il quadro fu dipinto da un allievo di Raffaello.''^(Zingarelli 2010)^(TLIO)^(Wiktionary)

+ # With, from, of cause: ''Piangeva dalla rabbia.''^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # At or to someone's house, shop or office: ''Stasera ceniamo da Luca.''^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Through, by way of: ''Per andare a Roma siamo passati da Firenze.''^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # For, marking purpose or use: ''scarpe da ginnastica'', ''occhiali da sole''.^(Treccani 2011)^(Wiktionary)

+ # With, marking a quality: ''un uomo dalla barba bianca''.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Like, as, in the manner of; at the age of: ''Si è comportato da vero amico.'' ''Da bambino viveva in campagna.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Worth, costing: ''una moneta da due euro''.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # With an infinitive, marking necessity, purpose or result: ''Ho molto da studiare.'' ''Era così stanco da non reggersi in piedi.''^(Gabrielli 2020)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[dabbene]]

+ * [[dabbasso]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[dà]]

+ * [[di]]

+ * [[a]]

+ * [[la|dē]]

+ * [[la|ab]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Da'' is elided only in a few fixed phrases such as ''d'ora in poi'', ''d'altra parte'' and ''d'altronde''.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010) It is not to be confused with ''dà'' “gives”, from [[dare]], which carries an accent.^(Wiktionary)^(Treccani 2011) In measurement ''da'' is also the symbol of the prefix [[deca-]], “ten times”.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}