făinar

Forms

făinar m (plural făinari); n (plural făinare)^[1][2] The older form is fărinar.^[1][2]

Etymology

It is formed from Romanian făină + -ar, with the agent suffix for the merchant and the suffix of containers for the bin.^[1][3][4] Pușcariu and Candrea–Densusianu took the merchant word straight from Latin farīnārius (“of flour”), a view the Academy dictionary abandoned.^[4][5] Wiktionary gives both explanations, through the older form fărinar.^[2]

The word has an Aromanian counterpart, Aromanian fãrinar (“flour merchant”), which Papahagi derives from the Latin adjective.^[6] The Academy dictionary compares Italian farinaio, Occitan farinier and Spanish harinero, each formed on its own language's word for flour.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

MDA2 dates it to Polizu's Romanian–German dictionary of 1857, which, according to the Academy dictionary, even gave it the sense of a flour dish.^[1][3] Candrea–Densusianu record the merchant sense.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The Academy dictionary found the bin sense only in dictionaries, Costinescu's and Laurian and Massim's, and marked it as suspect.^[3] The person senses, a flour merchant and the carter who brings the flour from the mill, are in CADE.^[7] In the form fărinar it also names the wooden platform round a millstone.^[1] In recent slang a făinar is a drug dealer.^[8]

Timeline

• 1857 – in Polizu's dictionary.^[1]
• 1870 – the bin sense in Costinescu's dictionary.^[3]
• 1931 – the merchant and carter senses in CADE.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. (dated, masculine) A flour merchant; also a carter who transports flour.^[1][7]
2. (dated, neuter) A chest or bin for storing flour.^[1][9]
3. (neuter, in the form fărinar) The wooden platform round a millstone.^[1]
4. (slang, masculine) A drug dealer.^[8]

Related words

• făină
• Aromanian fãrinar

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 883
2. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
3. ^ a b c d e 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. făinar
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. făină
5. ^ a b Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București
6. ^ Papahagi, Tache (1963), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 452
7. ^ a b c Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. făinar
8. ^ a b Volceanov, George (2007), Dicționar de argou al limbii române, București: Niculescu, p. s.v. făinar
9. ^ Bulgăr, Gheorghe; Constantinescu-Dobridor, Gheorghe (2002), Dicționar de arhaisme și regionalisme, 2 vols., București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. făinar