francese Italian · revision 38262

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1274, Brunetto Latini|origins=la-lat Francia}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /franˈt͡ʃe.ze/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''francese''' ''m or f'' by sense (plural francesi)^(Wiktionary)

+ Old Italian also had ''franzese'', which survived as an archaic form, and ''francioso'', modelled on [[fro|françois]].^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(TLIO) Dante uses ''francesco'' for “French”.^(Prati 1951|461)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|fro|franceis]], recorded in 1080 and formed from [[m|fro|France]], the land the Franks occupied.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026) The name first meant a small region north of Paris, then the domain of the first Capetian kings and finally the whole territory they ruled.^(DELI 1999) Its source is [[la-lat|Francia|t=land of the Franks]], a name that gradually replaced [[m|la-lat|Gallia]] in the early Middle Ages.^(Nocentini 2010) The modern form is [[fr|français]].^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ Meyer-Lübke traced the Italian word, with [[es|francés]] and [[pt|francês]], to [[pro|franses]] rather than to French.^(REW 1935) DEI derives the Old Occitan and French forms from a [[la-lat|Franciscus]].^(DEI|1705) Wiktionary also analyses the word within Italian as [[Francia]] with the suffix [[-ese]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ According to Sabatini and Coletti, the old form with ⟨z⟩ reproduces the hissing /ts/ that the Gallo-Romance dialects kept where the sound had not become a palatal.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The TLIO's first record is in Brunetto Latini's ''Tesoretto'', written before 1274 in Florence, with the senses “of France, coming from France” and, as a noun, “a native of France”.^(TLIO) DELI dates the form ''franzese'' to before 1310, in the poet Cione, and ''francese'' to before 1504, in Pandolfo Collenuccio.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In Old Italian the plural ''francesi'' could also refer to the peoples of ancient Gaul.^(TLIO) The use for the language, ''il francese'', is recorded by Tommaseo, who notes that until the 12th century the king of France was styled ''re de' Francesi'', king of the French.^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861)

+

+ ''Mal francese'', “the French disease”, was syphilis, so called because it was blamed on the troops of Charles VIII, who came down into Italy in 1494 to conquer the Kingdom of Naples.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) It is recorded in the 16th century, in Bembo, and the older ''francioso'' could mean the disease itself.^(DEI|1705)^(Prati 1951|461) ''Andarsene alla francese'' meant leaving a party after saying goodbye to the hostess only, so as not to disturb the other guests.^(DEI|1705)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+

+ Derivatives followed from the 17th century: ''francesismo'', a French word or phrase taken into another language, from 1690 in Lorenzo Magalotti, and ''francesista'', first a supporter of French usage (1800) and then a specialist in French language and literature (1942).^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) Romanian borrowed the Italian word as [[ro|francez]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1080 – Old French ''franceis'' is recorded.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * Before 1274 – Brunetto Latini uses ''francese'' in the ''Tesoretto''.^(TLIO)

+ * Before 1310 – The form ''franzese'' appears in Cione.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1494 – The French army of Charles VIII invades Italy, and the ''mal francese'' is named after it.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)

+ * Before 1504 – Pandolfo Collenuccio writes ''francese''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1690 – ''Francesismo'' (as ''franzesismo'') appears in Lorenzo Magalotti.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1942 – ''Francesista'' is recorded for a scholar of French.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # [[m|en|French]], of or from [[Francia|alt=France]]: ''il vino francese''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(in phrases)'' ''alla francese'', in the French manner, and ''nasino alla francese'', a slightly turned-up nose.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A native or inhabitant of France, a Frenchman or Frenchwoman.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(masculine, singular only)'' The French [[lingua|alt=language]]: ''Mia nonna leggeva Proust in francese.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(masculine, singular only)'' French as a school subject.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[francesismo]]

+ * [[francesista]]

+ * [[francesina]]

+ * [[francesizzare]]

+ * [[francesità]]

+ * [[franceseria]]

+ * [[infrancesare]]

+ * [[antifrancese]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[Francia]]

+ * [[franco]]

+ * [[francioso]]

+ * [[fr|français]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Francese'' is spelled with a lower-case initial, as are the other Italian nouns and adjectives of nationality.^(Wiktionary)^(GRADIT 2003) ''Mal francese'' for syphilis is now dated.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}