amator

Forms

amator m (plural amatori, feminine equivalent amatoare)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French amateur, first “lover of something”.^[2][3][4][1] DEX, MDA2 and the dictionaries of neologisms name Latin amātor (“lover”) beside the French word, and the DA calls it a French neologism matching the Latin one.^[5][6][7][8]

French borrowed the word in 1488 from the Latin noun, which is formed on amō (“to love”).^[9][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR and Tiktin date the first record to 1829, in the newspaper Curierul Românesc.^[2][4] There it meant an interested buyer: a notice asked those interested to apply to a given address.^[4]

Semantic evolution

The word meant “lover” of things, such as art, and “interested party, would-be buyer”, a sense still in DEX.^[4][5] Its other sense, someone who practises an art, a sport or a trade for pleasure and not as a profession, gave amatorism (1922, from French), amatoristic “unprofessional” (1958) and radioamator “radio ham” (1966).^[2][6]

Timeline

• 1829 – the first record, in Curierul Românesc.^[2][4]
• 1922 – amatorism “amateurism”.^[2]
• 1958 – amatoristic “amateurish”.^[2]
• 1961 – cineamator “amateur film-maker”.^[2]
• 1966 – radioamator “radio ham”.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A person who is fond of something or has a passion for it; also someone ready to buy something: amator de muzică.^[5][6]
2. An amateur: someone who practises an art, a sport or a trade without doing it professionally; a dilettante.^[5][7]

Adjective

1. Not professional, done as an amateur: teatru de amatori, un fotograf amator.^[5][3]

Word family

• amatorism
• cineamatorism
• radioamator
• radioamatorism
• amatoristic
• cineamator

Related words

• Latin amātor
• French amateur

References

1. ^ a b 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” (2011–), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române (DELR), vol. I: A–B (2011), vol. II: C (2015–2018), București: Editura Academiei Române; continued online at delr.lingv.ro, p. s.v. amator
3. ^ a b 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. amator
4. ^ a b c d e Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. amator
5. ^ a b c d e DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 33
6. ^ a b c Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 49
7. ^ a b Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. amator
8. ^ Academia Română (1913–1949), Dicționarul limbii române (DA), ed. Sextil Pușcariu, tom I (A–B, C, D–De) and tom II (F–I, J–Lojniță), București: Socec / Universul / Monitorul Oficial și Imprimeriile Statului; page scans at cflr-scans.solirom.ro, p. s.v. amator
9. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert