memoir English · revision 39802

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1494, Loutfut Manuscript|origins=la memoria}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * UK: /ˈmɛmwɑː/^(Wiktionary)

+ * US: /ˈmɛmwɑɹ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|frm|memoire|t=written account, record, memorandum]], a masculine noun recorded in Old French from about 1190,^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002) which was a specialized use of the feminine [[m|fro|memoire|t=memory]],^(OED 2026)^(Hoad 1986)^(Weekley 1921) from [[la|memoria|t=memory]],^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(AHD 2024) the source of [[memory]].^(Etymonline)^(Klein 1966) Hoad explains the change of gender by an appositional use, in which the word followed a noun for a writing to be remembered,^(Hoad 1986) and the OED notes that the main senses in English follow those in French.^(OED 2026) Etymonline traces the word through [[m|xno|memorie|t=note, memorandum]] to the root [[ine-pro|*(s)mer-|t=to remember]].^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A note, memorandum or record, chiefly Scottish in early use: 1494, in the Loutfut Manuscript; this sense is obsolete.^(OED 2026)^(HTOED) Barnhart and Etymonline date ''memoire'', a written record, to the early 15th century (1427 in Barnhart), as a variant of ''memorie'' (memory),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) while Merriam-Webster gives 1571 and Dictionary.com 1560–70.^(MWU 2024)^(Dictionary.com 2016)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The modern senses appeared in the 17th century.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) The plural ''memoirs'', records of events written from the writer's own knowledge, is recorded from 1659,^(OED 2026)^(Barnhart 1988) and ''memoirs'' as autobiographical reminiscences from 1676, in Wycherley's ''The Plain Dealer'';^(OED 2026) Barnhart finds this sense in Evelyn's ''Diary'' in 1673.^(Barnhart 1988) The singular for a learned essay or dissertation dates from a1680, and the plural for the proceedings of a learned society followed.^(OED 2026)^(Hoad 1986) Johnson (1755) defined a memoir as an account of transactions familiarly written.^(Johnson 1755) The use of ''memoir'' in the singular for a whole biography or autobiography is recorded from 1810.^(OED 2026) In diplomacy the word kept the old sense of a formal memorandum,^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) and in West Yorkshire dialect it meant a remembrance or recollection.^(Wright 1898) Wiktionary records an obsolete anglicized pronunciation /ˈmɛmɔɪəɹ/.^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1427 – ''memoire'', a written record.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1494 – a note, memorandum or record (obsolete by 1790).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1571 – (diplomacy) a formal memorandum.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1659 – plural, records of events from personal knowledge.^(OED 2026)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1676 – plural, autobiographical reminiscences.^(OED 2026)

+ * a1680 – an essay on a learned subject.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1810 – a biography or autobiography.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # An account of a person's own life and experiences; usually in the plural, [[autobiography|alt=autobiographical]] recollections: ''The former ambassador is writing her memoirs.''^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # A [[biography]] or historical account, especially one based on the writer's personal knowledge.^(Collins 2023)^(SOED 2002)

+ # An [[essay]] or [[monograph]] on a specialized or learned subject; in the plural, the published proceedings of a learned society.^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # (diplomacy) An official note or report; a [[memorandum]].^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[memoirist]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[memory]]

+ * [[memorandum]]

+ * [[memorial]]

+ * [[remember]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}