carta Italian · revision 38020

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=1219, Breve di Montieri|origins=grc χάρτης}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈkar.ta/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''carta''' ''f'' (plural carte, diminutive cartìna, pejorative cartàccia)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|charta|t=sheet of papyrus; writing, letter]], [[der|grc|χάρτης|tr=khártēs|t=leaf of papyrus]], a Greek word of uncertain origin.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(DEI|784) Latin made it feminine.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ The word is found throughout Romance.^(Nocentini 2010)^(DEI|784) According to the LEI, the original sense “sheet of paper” survives only in Italo-Romance and in Old Spanish, while the sense “written sheet, letter, document” is widespread: [[ro|carte|t=letter, book]], [[fro|charte|t=charter]], [[pro|carta|t=letter]], [[ca|carta]], [[es|carta]] and [[pt|carta]].^(LEI|13, 1340)^(REW 1935)^(Nocentini 2010) The writing material was not only papyrus but also birch bark, as the early loan [[goh|charza]] shows: it became [[de|Kerze|t=candle]], because the bark was soaked in oil.^(LEI|13, 1340)

+

+ Many derivatives go back to Latin [[m|la|chartula|t=small paper; deed]], which Late and Medieval Latin used for notarial documents: [[cartolaio]], [[cartolare]] and [[cartolina]].^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) [[cartoccio|alt=Cartoccio]] was borrowed as [[fr|cartouche]], and [[scartare]] “to discard (cards)” as [[fr|écarter]].^(REW 1935)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ DELI's first record is the sense “document recording a legal agreement”, in the ''Breve di Montieri'' of 1219, a Tuscan statute.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003) The material, the thin sheet made from pulped fibres, is first recorded in Brunetto Latini, who died in 1294;^(DELI 1999)^(LEI|13, 1340) Old Veronese ''charta'' is of the 13th century.^(DELI 1999)^(LEI|13, 1340)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Playing cards are recorded before 1419, in Giovanni Dominici, and Medieval Latin already had ''ludus a cartis'' at Piacenza in the 13th century.^(DELI 1999)^(DEI|784) A map is a ''carta'' from 1435–1443, the constitution of a state (''carta costituzionale'') from 1800, and the restaurant menu from before 1866, in Massimo d'Azeglio.^(DIFIT)^(DELI 1999) Petrarch's “né carta e inchiostro / bastarebben al vero” (neither paper nor ink would be enough for the truth) and Marco Polo's account of Chinese paper money made from the inner bark of a tree show the material in the 14th century.^(GDLI|2, 807)

+

+ Compounds record old crafts: ''carta di pecora'' “sheepskin parchment” (13th century) became [[cartapecora]] in Pietro Bembo, ''carta pesta'' “papier-mâché” is found in Sienese art documents of the 14th–15th centuries, and ''carta di straccio'' “paper of rags” became [[cartastraccia]].^(DELI 1999) Modern compounds name documents and means of payment: ''carta d'identità'' and ''carta di credito''.^(Wiktionary)^(GDLI)

+

+ German has ''Karte'' from 1411, in the senses “sheet”, then “sea chart” and “playing card”, though it is normally traced to French.^(DIFIT) Italian ''carta'' was borrowed into Greek, Hungarian, Maltese and Amharic.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1219 – ''Carta'' “legal document” in the ''Breve di Montieri''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 13th century – Medieval Latin ''ludus a cartis'' “card game” at Piacenza.^(DEI|784)

+ * Before 1294 – Brunetto Latini uses ''carta'' for the material.^(DELI 1999)^(DIFIT)

+ * Before 1419 – Playing cards in Giovanni Dominici.^(DELI 1999)^(DIFIT)

+ * 1411 – German ''Karte'' is first recorded.^(DIFIT)

+ * 1435–1443 – ''Charta'' in the sense “map”.^(DIFIT)

+ * 1800 – ''Carta costituzionale'' “constitution” in Ranza.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1866 – Massimo d'Azeglio uses ''carta'' for a menu.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|paper]], the material made from cellulose or other fibres pressed into thin sheets, used for writing, printing and wrapping: ''Ha incartato il libro con la carta da regalo.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A sheet of writing, a written or printed page, (plural) papers, documents: ''Sul suo tavolo c'erano carte dappertutto.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # An official [[m|en|document]] or deed, ''carte personali'', personal papers: ''Bisogna firmare le carte dal notaio.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # A formal declaration of principles; a [[m|en|charter]] or constitution: ''Carta dei diritti dell'uomo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # A playing [[m|en|card]], especially in the plural: ''Dopo cena giocavano a carte.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[m|en|map]], geographical, nautical or thematic: ''carta geografica'', ''carta nautica''.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # The [[m|en|menu]] in a restaurant, ''alla carta'', à la carte.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A card for identification or payment: ''carta d'identità'', ''carta di credito''.^(Wiktionary)^(GDLI)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[cartaceo]]

+ * [[cartaio]]

+ * [[cartapecora]]

+ * [[cartapesta]]

+ * [[cartastraccia]]

+ * [[cartamoneta]]

+ * [[cartella]]

+ * [[cartello]]

+ * [[cartellone]]

+ * [[cartina]]

+ * [[cartoccio]]

+ * [[cartiera]]

+ * [[carteggio]]

+ * [[cartone]]

+ * [[cartolaio]]

+ * [[cartoleria]]

+ * [[cartolina]]

+ * [[cartografia]]

+ * [[cartomanzia]]

+ * [[incartare]]

+ * [[scartare]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[cartaccia]]

+ * [[cartario]]

+ * [[cartificio]]

+ * [[cartola]]

+ * [[cartotecnica]]

+ * [[cartuccia]]

+ * [[cartulario]]

+ * [[la|charta]]

+ * [[fr|carte]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Set phrases with the playing-card sense are common: ''mettere le carte in tavola'' “to lay one's cards on the table”, ''cambiare le carte in tavola'' “to shift one's ground”, ''avere le carte in regola'' “to have the right qualifications”.^(GRADIT 2003)^(DEI|784) ''Carta canta'' (“paper sings”) is said to show that a written document cannot be denied.^(GRADIT 2003) ''Sulla carta'' means “in theory”.^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}