figliolo Italian · revision 38315

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=late 12th century, rents of the Badia di Coltibuono|origins=la fīlius}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /fiʎˈʎɔ.lo/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''figliolo''' ''m'' (plural figlioli, feminine figliola)^(Wiktionary)

+ The literary form is [[figliuolo]], under which the TLIO lists the word.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Treccani 2011)^(TLIO) The plural was also ''figliuoi'' in Old Italian.^(GDLI)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|fīliolus|t=little son]], the diminutive of [[m|la|fīlius|t=son]] with the suffix [[m|la|-olus]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)^(OLD 2012) Sabatini–Coletti start from [[la-vul|*filiolu]].^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026) In Italian it can also be read as [[af|it|figlio|-olo]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ The same Latin word survives as [[fr|filleul|t=godson]], [[es|hijuelo|t=little child]] and, in the Campidanese dialect of Sardinia, [[sc|filoru|t=child to be baptised]].^(REW 1935) Meyer-Lübke notes that [[figliuolo]] replaced [[figlio]] in central Italy and in northern Italy except Piedmont.^(REW 1935) GDLI describes the Latin word as belonging to Italy and the western Romance languages.^(GDLI)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The first record, in the form ''filiolo'', is in the rent books of the Badia di Coltibuono, at the end of the 12th century.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) The form ''figliolo'' appears before 1292 in Bono Giamboni, already as an affectionate form of address.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From the beginning ''figliolo'' was a warmer, more familiar word for a son than ''figlio''.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003) The old literature used the diphthongised ''figliuolo'': Dante writes of “my son who is dead” (''del mio figliuol ch'è morto''), and Boccaccio of a man with three handsome and virtuous sons.^(GDLI) Treccani notes that the word is felt as regional, especially Tuscan.^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ The word came to mean a boy or young man in general, often in exclamations of praise or of resignation, and a priest uses it to address the faithful.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026) With a capital it is the Son, the second person of the Trinity, more often in the form ''Figliuolo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011) The parable of the prodigal son made ''figliol prodigo'' a name for someone who comes back after going astray.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Late 12th century – ''Filiolo'' appears in the rents of the Badia di Coltibuono.^(DELI 1999)

+ * About 1261 – Zingarelli's date for ''figliuolo''.^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ * Before 1292 – Bono Giamboni uses ''figliolo'', also as a form of address.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[m|en|son]], with a familiar and affectionate tone: ''Ha tre figlioli, tutti già sposati.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(Christianity)'' With a capital, the Son, the second person of the [[m|en|Trinity]].^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # A boy or young man, often in exclamations: ''È proprio un bravo figliolo.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # A form of address from an older person to a younger one, or from a priest to the faithful: ''Ascoltami, figliolo.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[figlioletto]]

+ * [[figliolanza]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[figlio]]

+ * [[figliola]]

+ * [[la|filiolus]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Il figliol prodigo'', the prodigal son of the Gospel parable, is used jokingly of someone who returns after a long absence or goes back on a decision.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}