critic

Forms

critic m (plural critici); as an adjective critic m or n (feminine singular critică, masculine plural critici, feminine/neuter plural critice)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin criticus (“critic; decisive”), a learned borrowing, as well as borrowed from French critique: DELR, MDA2, DEX, NODEX and Wiktionary give both,^{[2][3][4][5][1]} while DA and DLRM put the French word first and Tiktin says Latin, also through other languages.^[6][7] The Latin word is from Ancient Greek κριτικός (kritikós, “able to discern, to judge”), from κρίνω (krínō, “to separate, judge”).^[2][6][8]

DELR keeps the sense “decisive, of a crisis” apart, as a second headword, in the family of criză: it comes from the same Latin word, first used in medicine of the decisive moment of an illness.^[9] DELR names the French adjective as a second source.^[9] The French word too entered the language in medicine, in 1372.^[10]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR's first record is from about 1770, in the sense of someone who judges the qualities and faults of people, ideas and works;^[2][7] Tiktin also dates it 1770.^[2][7] The medical and general sense “decisive” is first recorded in Gheorghe Șincai's chronicle in 1812.^[9]

Semantic evolution

The Transylvanian School used an adapted adjective criticesc as well (1800).^[2][7] The Lexicon de la Buda of 1825 has criticu with Latin criticus and German der Kritiker.^[11] Costinescu's dictionary of 1870 gives only the crisis sense: a pulsu critică is the pulse that shows an illness reaching its crisis, and a critical position is a dangerous one.^[12]

From the middle of the 19th century the noun critic, the judge of literary and artistic works, became common: Alexandrescu, A. Russo and Eminescu, whose poem is titled “Criticilor mei” “To my critics”, use it.^[6] Science added set phrases: ediție critică “critical edition”, temperatură critică “critical temperature”, stare critică “critical state”.^[4][3] Vârsta critică is the age at which children become adolescents.^[3][6]

Timeline

• c. 1770 – first record, of a person who judges people and works.^[2][7]
• 1787 – the noun critică “criticism”.^[2]
• 1800 – the adjective criticesc.^[2]
• 1812 – “decisive”, in Șincai's chronicle; also necritic “uncritical”.^[9]
• 1825 – criticu in the Lexicon de la Buda.^[11]
• 1830 – the verb critica “to criticize”.^[2]
• 1870 – the crisis sense in Costinescu's dictionary.^[12]
• 1902 – autocritic “self-critical”.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Critical: assessing the qualities and faults of people, situations, facts or works;^[4][3] aparat critic “critical apparatus”, ediție critică “critical edition”.^[4][3]
2. Inclined to criticize.^[3][6]
3. Of or at a crisis: coming before a sudden change for the worse, decisive, dangerous, as in temperatură critică “critical temperature” or Bolnavul a trecut de momentul critic.^[4][3]

Noun

1. A critic: a specialist who analyses, interprets and assesses literary or artistic works.^[4][13]
2. (by extension) Someone who finds fault with everything.^[6]

Word family

• necritic
• autocritic
• hipercritic
• critica
• critică
• criticabil
• criticism
• criticastru

Related words

• criză
• criteriu
• Latin criticus
• French critique

Usage notes

DELR has two headwords, critic¹ “who judges, critical” and critic² “decisive, of a crisis”, the second under criză;^[2][9][4] DEX and MDA2 keep the senses under one adjective with the noun.^[2][9][4] The feminine noun critică “criticism” is a separate borrowing of 1787.^[2]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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. critic
3. ^ a b c d e f g Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 552
4. ^ 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. 251
5. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. critic
6. ^ a b c d e f 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. critic
7. ^ 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. crític
8. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 366
9. ^ a b c d e f 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. criză
10. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert, p. s.v. critique
11. ^ a b Lesicon românescu-latinescu-ungurescu-nemțescu quare de mai mulți autori, în cursul a trideci și mai multor ani s-au lucrat (1825), Buda: Typographia Universității (the Lexicon of Buda, ed. Petru Maior et al.), p. 148
12. ^ a b Costinescu, Ion (1870), Vocabularu romano-francesu, 2 vols., Bucuresci, p. 1, 271
13. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 1, 580