deținut

Forms

deținut m (plural deținuți, feminine equivalent deținută)^[1]

Etymology

It is from Romanian deține (“to hold; to detain”), its past participle used as an adjective and a noun.^[2][3][4][1] The DLR, CADE and MDA2 compare French détenu (“detainee”), and the neologism dictionaries call the noun modelled on it;^{[4][5][6][7][8][9]} Scriban and NODEX take it straight from French.^{[4][5][6][7][8][9]} The verb itself was borrowed from détenir, refashioned after ține, and DELR names also learned Latin dētineō for the sense “to detain”.^[10][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The DLR's first quotation is a document of 1836 about the overseer of the detainees at the Telega salt mines, who wanted to start cutting salt with them alone.^[4] Codru-Drăgușanu wrote that detainees were treated humanely, but also with the stick.^[4][6] Tiktin dates the word to Barițiu's dictionary of 1868.^[2]

Semantic evolution

The noun “prisoner, detainee” has been the main use from the first records on.^[4][3] As an adjective the participle keeps the senses of the verb: something held in someone's possession, a post held by someone, and, rarely and in older use, someone held by force.^[6][4] The phrase deținut politic “political prisoner” is frequent in the press after 1989.^[11] Codeținut “fellow prisoner” was borrowed from codétenu and is recorded from 1923.^[10]

Timeline

• 1836 – deținuți “detainees” in a document on the Telega salt mines.^[4]
• 1868 – in Barițiu's dictionary.^[2]
• 1923 – codeținut “fellow prisoner”.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. A detainee or prisoner: a person held under arrest, after a conviction or for an investigation.^[3][6][12]

Adjective

1. Held under arrest.^[6][4]
2. Of goods, rights or information: in someone's possession; of a post or rank: held by someone.^[6]
3. (obsolete, rare) Held by force.^[6][4]

Related words

• deține
• detenție
• codeținut
• French détenu

Usage notes

The feminine is deținută.^[1][3] Deținut politic means “political prisoner”.^[11]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. deținut
3. ^ a b c d e DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 304
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. deținut
5. ^ a b Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. deținut
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 684
7. ^ a b Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. s.v. deținut
8. ^ a b Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 416
9. ^ a b Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. deținut
10. ^ a b c 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. deține
11. ^ a b Dimitrescu, Florica (1997), Dicționar de cuvinte recente, 2nd ed., București: Logos (with the 3rd ed., 2013, in CLRE), p. s.v. deținút
12. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 89