internațional

Forms

internațional m or n (feminine singular internațională, masculine plural internaționali, feminine/neuter plural internaționale)^[1] Pontbriant's dictionary has an older variant internațiunal.^[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French international.^[3][4][5][1] The DA calls it a neologism after French, while Marcu and Maneca compare German international and Italian internazionale as well.^[2][6] By surface analysis it is inter- with național, and the French word is likewise formed from inter- and national.^[1] Scriban notes that the word was first used by the English philosopher Bentham at the end of the 18th century.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Pontbriant's dictionary (1862) records the variant internațiunal.^[2] MDA2's first record is in the Uricariul, before 1869; the same collection speaks of a trouble that „a luat proporții internaționale” “took on international proportions”.^[4][2]

Semantic evolution

The adjective first described what happens between nations or concerns relations between them: Hasdeu wrote of a triple international convention, Odobescu of a great international competition, Maiorescu of international treaties.^[2] It then extended to whatever concerns all nations or matters beyond one country's borders.^[3][8] Set phrases include drept internațional “international law” and limbă internațională, a national language widely used abroad, especially in diplomacy.^[3][4]

Used as a feminine noun, Internaționala named the socialist workers' association of many nations and, by extension, the song its members sang.^[2][9] Used as a noun of either gender it means a player who represents his or her country in international competitions.^[3][4] The derivatives internaționalism and internaționalist follow French internationalisme.^[2]

Timeline

• 1862 – the variant internațiunal in Pontbriant's dictionary.^[2]
• before 1869 – internațional in the Uricariul, MDA2's first record.^[4]
• 1931 – CADE records Internaționala, the socialist league and its song.^[9]

Meanings

Adjective

1. international: taking place between several nations, involving several countries or concerning the relations between them: un concurs internațional.^[3][4][1]
2. In which representatives of several states take part; of importance beyond the borders of a single country.^[3][4]
3. In set phrases: limbă internațională, a widely used language of diplomacy;^[3][4] drept internațional, the body of law governing relations between states.^[3][4]

Noun

1. A sportsman or sportswoman who represents their country in an international competition.^[3][4]

Word family

• internaționalism
• internaționalist
• internaționaliza

Related words

• național
• națiune

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. internațional
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 516
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 1150
5. ^ Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual
6. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România
7. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 651
8. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 532
9. ^ a b Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. internațional