gin

Forms

gin n (plural ginuri)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from English gin,^[2][3][1] and DEX and the DILF name French gin as a source as well;^[4][5] the DLRM gives only the French word.^[6] The English word, recorded from 1714, is short for geneva or genever, an adaptation of Dutch genever (“juniper; gin”), which has the same origin as Old French genevre (“juniper”).^[7] French borrowed the English word in 1759.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Scriban's dictionary of 1939 describes it as an English word for a kind of grain brandy made in England and Scotland.^[8] MDA2's first record is the Lexiconul tehnic român (1949–1955).^[2]

Semantic evolution

Romanian dictionaries define it as a spirit distilled from fermented grain mash flavoured with juniper berries,^[2][9] and NODEX places it in the English-speaking countries.^[10] DEX 2009 adds a second sense, a measure of the drink.^[4] The 1990s press uses gin tonic, and an article of 2008 retells a story of how gin and tonic water were first mixed in India.^[11]

Timeline

• 1939 – in Scriban's dictionary, as an English word.^[8]
• 1949 – in the Lexiconul tehnic român.^[2]
• 1958 – in DLRM, from French.^[6]
• 1995 – gin tonic in the press.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. gin: a spirit distilled from fermented grain mash in which juniper berries have been steeped.^[4][2]
2. A glass or serving of gin: A comandat încă un gin.^[4]

Usage notes

Several other words are spelled gin.^[2][8] One is an old word for an evil spirit, a jinn, from Arabic, which the CADE illustrates with Alecsandri;^[8][12] Cihac glossed it as “ghost, spectre”.^[13] A technical gin is a cotton gin, also from English.^[2] Regionally gin is a sounding rod with which fishermen probe the riverbanks to find sterlet, of unknown origin according to Șăineanu,^[14][15] and a variant of ghin “gouge”.^[2]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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, 998
3. ^ Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. gin
4. ^ a b c d DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 439
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. gin
6. ^ a b Academia Republicii Populare Romîne (1958), Dicționarul limbii romîne moderne, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. s.v. gin
7. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert, p. s.v. gin
8. ^ a b c d Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 558
9. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 383
10. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. gin
11. ^ a b Dimitrescu, Florica (1997), Dicționar de cuvinte recente, 2nd ed., București: Logos (with the 3rd ed., 2013, in CLRE), p. s.v. gin
12. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. gin
13. ^ Cihac, A. de (1879), Dictionnaire d'étymologie daco-romane II: Éléments slaves, magyars, turcs, grecs-moderne et albanais, Frankfurt am Main, p. 581
14. ^ Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 276
15. ^ Bulgăr, Gheorghe; Constantinescu-Dobridor, Gheorghe (2002), Dicționar de arhaisme și regionalisme, 2 vols., București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. gin