devota

Forms

a se devota (third-person singular present devotează, past participle devotat), 1st conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is a neologism, and the dictionaries name different sources.^[2][3][4] DEX 2009 and the DILF give borrowed from Latin dēvōtō as well as French dévouer (“to devote”).^[2][5] Ciorănescu, Tiktin and the DN give Latin alone, the DN comparing Italian devotare, which MDA2 and the DLR name as a source too.^{[4][6][7][8][9]} The MDN takes the Latin form after the French one.^[10]

DELR takes it from French, with its form fitted to the Latin infinitive that the French verb seemed to presuppose.^[3] The French verb adapts dēvoveō (“to vow to the gods, (reflexive) to sacrifice oneself”), itself formed from dē- and voveō (“to vow”), after the inherited vouer.^[3][1] The Latin verb is rare and meant “to bewitch, to curse”, not “to devote oneself”.^[3][11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is a letter of 1774 printed in the Uricariul, addressed to a high official: „Devotându-ne cu multă speranță și recunoștință înaltei prudențe și înțelepciuni … Excelenței Voastre” “devoting ourselves with much hope and gratitude to the high prudence and wisdom of Your Excellency”.^[9][8] DELR and Tiktin date it from Negulici's dictionary of 1848.^[3][6]

Semantic evolution

The verb has been reflexive from the start: to give oneself without reserve to a person, a cause or an idea.^[3][9] It took the dative, or in older use the preposition la: „La cauza cea sacră azi mă devotez cu totul” in Grigore Alexandrescu.^[12][9] Older dictionaries also give “to sacrifice oneself for another”.^[13][14]

The family grew in the 19th century: devot “pious” from 1840, devotament “devotion” from 1845, devotat “devoted” from 1856, each from French and fitted to the verb.^[3]

Timeline

• 1774 – devotându-ne in a letter printed in the Uricariul, the first record.^[9][8]
• 1840 – the adjective devot.^[3]
• 1845 – devotament, in C. A. Rosetti.^[3]
• 1848 – in Negulici's dictionary of neologisms.^[3]
• 1856 – the adjective devotat.^[3]
• 1862 – devotațiune in Pontbriant's dictionary.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. (reflexive) To devote oneself without reserve to the service of someone or something.^[2][8][1]
2. (reflexive, by extension) To dedicate oneself entirely, to consecrate oneself.^[8][2]

Word family

• devotament
• devotat
• devotațiune

Related words

• devot
• French dévouer

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 1, 305
3. ^ 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. devota
4. ^ a b 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. devota
5. ^ Costăchescu, Adriana; Dincă, Daniela; Dragoste, Ramona; Popescu, Mihaela; Scurtu, Gabriela (2009–2010), Dicționar de împrumuturi lexicale din limba franceză (DILF), 2 vols., Craiova: Universitaria, p. s.v. devota
6. ^ a b Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. devota
7. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. s.v. devota
8. ^ a b c d e Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 686
9. ^ a b c d e Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. devota
10. ^ Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. devota
11. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
12. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 91
13. ^ Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 1, 206
14. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. devota