figlio Italian · revision 37589

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=late 11th century|origins=ine-pro *dʰeh₁(y)-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈfiʎ.ʎo/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''figlio''' ''m'' (plural figli, feminine figlia, diminutive figliétto, pejorative figliàccio)^(Wiktionary)

+ Old forms include ''fi'', ''fio'', ''filio'', ''fillo'' and ''figliu''.^(TLIO) Dante uses the shortened ''fi’''.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|fīlius|t=son]].^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary) DÉRom reconstructs Proto-Romance */ˈɸili-u/, found in every Romance language;^(DÉRom) French and Franco-Provençal continue the nominative */ˈɸili-u-s/.^(DÉRom) It is panromance: [[fr|fils]], [[oc|filh]], [[ca|fill]], [[es|hijo]], [[pt|filho]], [[sc|fizu]] and [[ro|fiu]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) The Latin cluster /lj/ became the palatal /ʎ/ of Tuscan, written ⟨gli⟩.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+

+ The Latin word goes back to [[itc-pro|*fīlio-]], and further to an adjective [[ine-pro|*dʰeh₁i-l-|t=suckling]], from the root [[ine-pro|*dʰeh₁(y)-|t=to suck]].^(de Vaan 2008)^(Wiktionary) The same root is in [[m|la|fēmina|t=woman]], [[m|la|fēcundus|t=fertile]] and [[m|la|fellō|t=to suck]], and an Umbrian word for a suckling animal shows the old meaning.^(de Vaan 2008)^(Nocentini 2010)^(DEI) Devoto points out that the Latin word displaced the inherited words for “son” and “daughter” that survive in [[grc|υἱός|tr=huiós]], [[m|grc|θυγάτηρ|tr=thugátēr]], [[de|Sohn]] and [[m|de|Tochter]].^(Devoto 1968|183)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The plural ''fili'' is in a text of the end of the 11th century, and the TLIO's first record is a Pisan document of the first half of the 12th century, in the sense “male child, in relation to the parents”.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)^(TLIO) The form ''figlio'' is in Jacopone da Todi, before 1306.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Old Italian already used the word in the plural for children of both sexes, before a father's name to identify someone, for Christ, for the young of animals, and figuratively for a member of a people or a religious community; it was also an affectionate way of addressing a younger person, and ''figlio del diavolo'' was a common insult.^(TLIO) Latin had already given it a wider legal sense, “descendant”, and an affective and spiritual one in the language of the Church.^(GDLI)

+

+ The diminutive ''figliolo'', from Latin ''filiolus'', is recorded at the end of the 12th century;^(DELI 1999)^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) Tommaseo noted that Tuscans almost always said ''figliuolo'' in speech.^(DELI 1999)^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) Other derivatives are old too: ''figliastro'' “stepson” in 1211, ''figliare'' “to give birth (of animals)” in 1291 and ''figlioccio'' “godson” in Boccaccio, after Medieval Latin ''filiocius''.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ Many phrases are built on the word: ''figlio di papà'' for a young man helped by his father's money and position, ''figlio d'arte'' for someone in the parents' profession, ''figlio dei fiori'' for a hippie, and ''figlio della serva'' for someone nobody takes into account, which DELI compares with Milanese ''fioeu de la serva''.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(DELI 1999)^(GDLI|5, 964)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Late 11th century – The plural ''fili'' is recorded.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * First half of the 12th century – The word appears in a Pisan document.^(TLIO)

+ * Late 12th century – The diminutive ''filiolo'' is recorded.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1211 – ''Figliastro'' is recorded in a Florentine account book.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1306 – Jacopone da Todi uses the form ''figlio''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1353 – Boccaccio uses ''figlioccio''.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|son]]: a male person in relation to his parents.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''(usually plural)'' [[m|en|child]], children of either sex: ''hanno tre figli''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(religion)'' ''il Figlio'', the second person of the Trinity, Christ.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # Affectionate or patronising form of address to a young person: ''su con la vita, figlio mio''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # Young of an animal.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # Person seen in relation to his origins: ''un figlio del popolo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+ # ''(figurative)'' Product, result: ''è figlio del suo tempo'', ''quella decisione fu figlia della paura''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(plural)'' Name of some religious congregations.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(physics)'' Intermediate member of a radioactive series.^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[figlia]]

+ * [[figliolo]]

+ * [[figlioletto]]

+ * [[figliastro]]

+ * [[figlioccio]]

+ * [[figliare]]

+ * [[figliata]]

+ * [[figliolanza]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[affiliare]]

+ * [[filiale]]

+ * [[filiazione]]

+ * [[femmina]]

+ * [[fecondo]]

+ * [[la|filius]]

+ * [[fr|fils]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Insults built on the word include ''figlio di buona donna'' and ''figlio d'un cane''; in a joking tone they can also express grudging admiration.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011) ''Salute e figli maschi'' is an old formula of good wishes.^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}