deces

Forms

deces n (plural decese)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French décès (“death”), with borrowed from Latin dēcessus (“departure, decease”) named beside it as a learned model.^[2][3][4][1] Tiktin gives only the French word,^[5] and the DLR adds Italian decesso to the French and Latin sources.^[6] The French word continues the Latin noun of dēcēdō (“to depart, die”);^[1][7] its first sense in Latin was “departure”, as of a magistrate leaving his province.^[7] DELR lists the noun in the family of the verb deceda.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin's first record is of 1863, with the sense “decease, death”.^[5] DELR and MDA2 date the word to Laurian and Massim's dictionary of 1871.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept the single sense “the end of a person's life”, mostly in formal and official use.^[3][8] Șăineanu defined it as a natural death, and CADE glosses it with the native words for passing away.^[9][10] Set phrases of the civil register grew around it: caz de deces “a case of death”^[5] and act (or certificat) de deces “death certificate”, the official record of a death and its cause.^[4]

Timeline

• 1863 – the first record Tiktin cites.^[5]
• 1871 – in Laurian and Massim's dictionary, the date DELR and MDA2 give.^[2][4]
• 1929 – Șăineanu defines it as a natural death.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. death, decease: the end of a person's life.^[3][4][1]
2. act de deces / certificat de deces: a death certificate, the official document that records a death and its cause.^[4]

Usage notes

The plural is decese;^[3][4] decesuri is rare.^[3][4]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d 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. decedá
3. ^ a b c d e DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 277
4. ^ 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, 616
5. ^ a b c d Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. decés
6. ^ Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. deces
7. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 395
9. ^ a b Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 1, 194
10. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească