întunereca

Forms

întunereca (third-person singular present întunerecă, past participle întunerecat), 1st conjugation^[1] MDA2 lists the variants întunereci and întunerica or întunerici.^[2] CADE quotes the first: „cînd începe a se întunereci, se strîng copiii ... și aprind un foc” “when it begins to grow dark, the children gather … and light a fire”.^[3] CADE also quotes întunerici: „se întunericise bine” “it had grown quite dark”.^[3]

Etymology

In Candrea and Densusianu's view it is inherited from Vulgar Latin *intenebricō (“to darken”), on tenebricus (“dark, gloomy”).^[4][3][1] The expected outcome would have been ⟨*întinereca⟩: they explain the ⟨u⟩ by the influence of întuneca, which has the same meaning.^[4] Wiktionary adds that the Latin verb is attested in Medieval Latin and that the Romanian word was confused with that probably unrelated verb.^[1] The Latin adjective is formed on tenebra (“darkness, gloom”).^[1][5] Candrea and Densusianu also list Aromanian and Megleno-Romanian verbs of the same make.^[4]

MDA2 instead derives it in Romanian from the noun întuneric, itself from the same Latin adjective.^[2] Ciorănescu leaves open how that verb, which he derives from a Latin verb on tunica, is linked with this one.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

MDA2 dates the first record to the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki of the early 16th century, with the sense “to darken”.^[2] Candrea and Densusianu cite it from the Psaltirea Scheiană (Psalm 104:28), Coresi's Psalter (Psalm 68:24) and Coresi's Tetraevanghel (Matthew 16:3), with the meaning “to make dark, to darken”.^[4]

Semantic evolution

The verb has kept its first sense, “to darken”, used both transitively and reflexively.^[2][4] The reflexive is used of nightfall, as in the quotations from folk tales that CADE gives.^[3][2] MDA2 marks the word as old and regional, and Wiktionary as obsolete.^[2][1]

Timeline

• c. 1500–1520 – in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki, the first record.^[2]
• 16th century – in the Psaltirea Scheiană, Psalm 104:28.^[4]

Meanings

Verb

1. (obsolete, regional, transitive and reflexive) To darken, to make or become dark.^[2][4][1]
2. (obsolete, regional, reflexive) Of the day: to grow dark at nightfall.^[2][3]

Related words

• întuneric
• întuneca

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 1261
3. ^ a b c d e Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. întunereca
4. ^ a b c d e f g Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București, p. s.v. întunereca
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Ciorănescu, Alexandru (1958–1966), Diccionario etimológico rumano, La Laguna: Universidad de La Laguna (Romanian ed.: Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române, București: Saeculum, 2001), p. s.v. întuneca