asupra

Forms

asupra (+genitive)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin ad suprā (“over, above”), made of ad (“to”) and suprā (“above”), which comes from super (“above, over”).^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Ciorănescu gives the sister-branch forms Aromanian asupră and Megleno-Romanian supră, and the Romance parallels Sardinian assubra and dialect forms of Italian such as assupra in Abruzzo and assura in Milan; the other Romance languages kept only the simple preposition, as Romanian did in spre.^[3][4]

DELR sees the formation differently: the older form was asupră, from the simple preposition, and the final -a of the modern form is the definite article, added in the prepositional uses that govern a genitive, as Pușcariu explained.^[2] It adds that the preposition a was probably attached in Romanian itself, since the dialects south of the Danube use other prepositions, as in Aromanian disupră and prisupră.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR's first record is a Slavonic–Romanian Gospel book of 1551–1553.^[2] The Psaltirea de la Voroneț (c. 1551–1558) has it in Psalm 103:14, and Coresi's psalter of 1570 in Psalm 54:11.^[6][7] MDA2 gives the Psaltirea Scheiană.^[8]

Semantic evolution

The old texts used it as an adverb as well as a preposition, with the senses “upon”, “against”, “about, concerning”, “near (in time)” and “in addition”; today it is a preposition with the genitive, and the senses “over” and “near (in time)” are rare or regional.^[2][3] Tiktin quotes Ureche on trees felled “upon them” beside the road, i-au surpat asupra lor.^[9] The adverb asupră survived in phrases such as cu asupră “in excess, more than enough”.^[3][5]

The verb asupri “to oppress” (1581, in Coresi) is a Romanian formation on the word, though Cipariu derived it from a Latin *adsuperāre.^[2][3] Old texts also had asupră as a noun meaning “usury”, in the Psaltirea Scheiană.^[2] deasupra “above” (1623–1626) comes from the older desupra, from dē and suprā, influenced by asupra.^[2]

Timeline

• 1551–1553 – the first record, in a Slavonic–Romanian Gospel book.^[2]
• c. 1551–1558 – in the Psaltirea de la Voroneț, Psalm 103:14.^[6]
• 1566 – asupriciune and asupritură “oppression” in Coresi.^[2]
• 1570 – in Coresi's psalter, Psalm 54:11.^[7]
• c. 1573–1578 – in the Psaltirea Scheiană, MDA2's first record.^[8]
• 1581 – the verb asupri “to oppress” and asupritor “oppressor” in Coresi's Evanghelie cu învățătură.^[2]
• 1623–1626 – deasupra “above”.^[2]

Meanings

Preposition

1. With the genitive: over, above, on top of: Norii stăteau asupra satului. “The clouds hung over the village.”^[5][1]
2. Towards, at, of a look or attention: și-a îndreptat privirea asupra ei “he turned his gaze on her”.^[5]
3. against, of an attack or a hostile act.^[5][2]
4. about, concerning: o discuție asupra bugetului “a discussion about the budget”.^[5][1]
5. (regional) Near, towards, of time: asupra nopții “towards nightfall”.^[5][2]

Word family

• asupră
• asupreală
• asuprelnic
• asupri
• asupriciune
• asuprit
• asupritură
• asupritor

Related words

• spre

Usage notes

A avea ceva asupra sa means “to carry something on one's person”, and a prinde pe cineva asupra faptului “to catch someone in the act”.^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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. asupra
3. ^ a b c d e 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. asupra
4. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 200
5. ^ a b c d e f g h DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 70
6. ^ a b Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Ungureanu, Mădălina; Moruz, Alexandru et al., roPsalt: Re-evaluating the Sixteenth Century Romanian Psalters (aligned corpus), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. Ps 103:14
7. ^ a b Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Ungureanu, Mădălina; Moruz, Alexandru et al., roPsalt: Re-evaluating the Sixteenth Century Romanian Psalters (aligned corpus), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. Ps 54:11
8. ^ a b Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 117
9. ^ Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. asupra