cumpăta

Forms

cumpăta (third-person singular present cumpătează, past participle cumpătat), 1st conjugation^[1]

Etymology

DELR, DEX and MDA2 take it as inherited from Vulgar Latin *compitō (“to count, reckon”), a spoken form of Latin computō (“to calculate, count up”), which is formed from con- and putō (“to reckon; to prune”).^[2][3][4][5] Candrea and Densusianu explain the vowel by a confusion of the endings ⟨-utare⟩ and ⟨-itare⟩, and the senses of the Romanian verb from the Latin ones “to calculate, to weigh up”.^[6] The same Latin verb gave Italian contare, French compter and conter, Occitan comtar and Spanish contar.^[2][7] computa and conta are later learned doublets of the same word.^[1]

Other scholars start from the noun cumpăt “moderation, composure”.^[2] Tiktin derives the verb from that noun, which he takes from Latin computus (“calculation”).^[2][8] Pușcariu, the DA and the REW derive the noun from Latin compitum (“crossroads”), with a sense development from “standing at the crossroads” to “hesitating, reflecting”, perhaps already in that Latin verb.^[2][9] Ciorănescu rejects the crossroads explanation as semantically unlikely, lists the verb among the derivatives of the noun, and allows that the noun itself may be a back-formation from the verb.^[10] DELR gives all these views.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki of the early 16th century, in the form cumpeta.^[2] There it renders a verb for “to run”, which Tiktin explains as a translator's error.^[8] Candrea's glossary of the Psaltirea Scheiană gives the same sense for its form cumpeteză.^[11] MDA2 dates its first record to the Psaltirea Scheiană of about 1573–1578.^[4]

Semantic evolution

In the old language the verb meant to arrange wisely, to decide, to direct someone, and also to keep within measure, to temper, to spare or save.^[2][4] The 17th- and 18th-century chronicles use it of God or of a ruler who disposes things: „Așa au cumpătat D-zeu” “so God ordained it”.^[8][12] The reflexive a se cumpăta “to restrain oneself” and the sense “to economize, to spare” survive regionally.^[3][8]

The verb has become rare; today it lives mainly in its past participle cumpătat “moderate, sensible”, and in the noun cumpătare “moderation”, recorded from about 1660.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1500-1520 – cumpeta in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki, the first record.^[2][8]
• c. 1573-1578 – cumpeteză in the Psaltirea Scheiană.^[4][11]
• 1610 – Cumpătă as a personal name, the first record of the noun cumpăt.^[2][13]
• 1613 – necumpătător “immoderate” in Varlaam's Leastvița.^[2]
• c. 1660 – cumpătare “moderation” and cumpătător “director, administrator” in the Hronograf.^[2]
• 1838 – cumpătate “moderation”.^[2]
• 1840 – necumpătare “lack of moderation”.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive and reflexive, rare) To moderate, temper or restrain;^[3][4] a se cumpăta to restrain oneself.^[3][4]
2. (transitive, regional) To spare, to economize, to use sparingly.^[3][8]
3. (dated and regional) To direct someone, to decide or arrange.^[3][4]

Word family

• cumpăt
• cumpătare
• cumpătător
• necumpătare

Related words

• computa
• conta
• Latin computō

Usage notes

The past participle cumpătat “moderate, sober” is much more common than the verb itself.^[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 n o p 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. cumpăta
3. ^ a b c d e f DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 1, 260
4. ^ 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, 572
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București, p. 444
7. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 2108
8. ^ 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. cumpăta
9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 2099
10. ^ 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. cumpăt
11. ^ a b Candrea, I.-A. (1916), Psaltirea Scheiană comparată cu celelalte psaltiri din sec. XVI și XVII traduse din slavonește, vol. II: Glosarele, București: Socec, p. 272
12. ^ 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. cumpăta
13. ^ Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. cumpăt