burlac

Forms

burlac m (plural burlaci)^[1] A regional variant burlag is recorded in Năsăud.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ukrainian бурлак (burlak), with Russian бурлак (burlak) named beside it as a source.^[2][4][1] In both languages the word meant a man who has left home to work, a vagrant, and also a bachelor; in Russian, in particular, a worker on river boats, and Ukrainian also has бурлака (burlaka) “bachelor”.^[2][5][3] Ciorănescu derives it from Russian, after Cihac, Berneker and DA, and notes that Berneker found the word obscure in Russian itself.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR's first record is a document of 1817 in Ghibănescu's Surete și izvoade, with the sense “unmarried man”.^[2] Tiktin's is a text of 1818 in Gaster's chrestomathy, glossed there as an unmarried young man.^[3][7]

Semantic evolution

The word means an unmarried man, often used as an adjective, and in regional speech also a widower.^{[4][8][9][10]} Creangă formed several derivatives: burlăcie “bachelorhood” (1877), burlăcesc “of a bachelor” (about 1880) and burlăcărit, a tax on bachelors in a bill that was never passed (1887).^[2] The verb burlăci “to live as a bachelor” followed in 1890 and the feminine burlăciță “unmarried woman” in 1966;^[2][3] Tiktin also records burlacă “old maid”.^[2][3]

Timeline

• 1817 – “unmarried man” in a document published by Ghibănescu.^[2]
• 1818 – in a text of Gaster's chrestomathy.^[3]
• 1877 – burlăcie “bachelorhood” in Creangă.^[2]
• c. 1880 – burlăcesc “of a bachelor” in Creangă.^[2]
• 1890 – burlăci “to live as a bachelor”.^[2]
• 1912 – burlăcește “like a bachelor”.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A bachelor, an unmarried man; holtei, celibatar, becher: Fratele meu a rămas burlac până la patruzeci de ani.^[4][8][1]
2. (regional) A widower.^[8][9][10]

Adjective

1. unmarried, single.^[1][8][4]

Word family

• burlăcesc
• burlăcește
• burlăci
• burlăcie

Related words

• holtei
• becher

Usage notes

In Sălaj a separate noun burlac means “barrel”;^[11][8] DELR derives it from burlan with a change of ending.^[11][8]

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 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. burlac
3. ^ a b c d e f Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. burlac
4. ^ a b c d DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 127
5. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună
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. burlac
7. ^ Gaster, M. (1891), Chrestomatie română: texte tipărite și manuscrise (sec. XVI–XIX), dialectale și populare, cu o introducere, gramatică și un glosar româno-francez, vol. II, Leipzig: Brockhaus / București: Socec
8. ^ a b c d e f Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 264
9. ^ a b Dima, Eugenia (coord.) (2007), Dicționar explicativ ilustrat al limbii române, Chișinău: Arc / Gunivas, p. s.v. burlac
10. ^ a b Stati, Vasile (2003), Dicționar moldovenesc-românesc, Chișinău, p. 43
11. ^ a b 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. burlan