mijloc

Forms

mijloc n (plural mijlocuri)^[1]

Etymology

Most dictionaries trace it to the phrase inherited from Latin medius locus (“middle place”).^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Ciorănescu names Cipariu, Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu and the REW for this view, but he thinks the word was more likely formed within Romanian from miez (“middle, core”) and loc (“place”), like French milieu.^[6][7] A direct Vulgar Latin *mediulocu meets the difficulty of the intervocalic /l/, which in inherited words becomes /r/;^[6] Pușcariu answered it with a form *mediolus locus, which Ciorănescu finds unnecessary.^[6] Capidan derives the Megleno-Romanian word from that same form.^[8]

The change of ⟨miez-⟩ to ⟨mij-⟩ is explained in two ways: Densusianu and Candrea saw the influence of Old Church Slavonic межда (mežda, “boundary”), while Ciorănescu prefers a phonetic cause, the unusual cluster /zl/ developing a glide, as in breaz with its plural ⟨breji⟩.^[6][9] The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian nolgiuc, Megleno-Romanian mejluc and Istro-Romanian mejloc.^[6][1][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin's first record is a Slavonic–Romanian document of 1504.^[4] In Romanian texts it appears in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki of about 1500–1520, MDA2's first record, which uses it seventeen times.^[2][10] The sense there is the middle of a place or a group, în mijlocul “in the midst of”.^[11][4]

Semantic evolution

The spatial sense “middle, centre” led to the middle of the body, the waist, and to the middle of a period or action.^[3][6] The old language already used prin mijlocul cuiva for “by means of someone”, as in Antim's sermons, and the sense “means, way” grew from it.^[4] The plural mijloace “means, resources” is recorded by Tiktin from the modern language, and today it also covers tools and equipment: mijloace de producție “means of production”, mijloace de transport “vehicles”.^[4][3] Veacul de mijloc was an old name for the Middle Ages.^[3]

Regional forms are many: miljoc in Muntenia, mijoc, mișloc, mirjoc and others, and the old mizloc.^[2][6] Derivatives include mijlociu “middle, average”, mijloci “to mediate; to procure”, mijlocaș “middle-ranking peasant; the middle horse of three” and nemijlocit “immediate”.^[6]

Timeline

• 1504 – first record, in a Slavonic–Romanian document.^[4]
• c. 1500–1520 – mijloc and mijlocul in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki.^[2][10]
• 1570 – frequent in Coresi's psalter.^[12]
• 1649 – mijloc glosses Slavonic sreda “middle” and mijlocul “loins” in Mardarie's lexicon.^[13]
• early 18th century – prin mijlocul “by means of” in Antim's sermons.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. The middle, centre: the point at equal distance from two extremes; the inner part of a space.^[3][2][1]
2. The waist, the part of the body between the chest and the hips.^[3][6]
3. The middle of a period of time, an action or a story.^[3]
4. (plural mijloace) A means, way or method; possibility; tools and equipment.^[3][1]
5. (plural mijloace) Money, resources, wealth.^[3][6][1]

Word family

• mijlocaș
• mijlocel
• mijloci
• mijlocitor
• mijlociu
• nemijlocit

Related words

• mediu
• miez
• medie
• loc

Usage notes

The plural is mijlocuri for some concrete senses (parts of objects) and mijloace for “means, resources”; an old plural mijloci also occurs.^[3][2] The word is also stressed mijlóc.^[3][2] A fi la mijloc means “to be at stake, be involved”, and a se pune la mijloc “to intervene, mediate”.^[3]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 11
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 653
4. ^ a b c d e f g Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. mijloc
5. ^ Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. mijloc
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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. mijloc
7. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 5462
8. ^ a b Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română, p. 187
9. ^ Georgiev, Vladimir I. et al. (eds.) (1971–), Bălgarski etimologičen rečnik, Sofija: Izdatelstvo na Bălgarskata akademija na naukite, p. 3, 714
10. ^ a b Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Ungureanu, Mădălina; Moruz, Alexandru et al., roPsalt: Re-evaluating the Sixteenth Century Romanian Psalters (aligned corpus), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. Ps 21:15
11. ^ Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Ungureanu, Mădălina; Moruz, Alexandru et al., roPsalt: Re-evaluating the Sixteenth Century Romanian Psalters (aligned corpus), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. Ps 21:23
12. ^ Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Ungureanu, Mădălina; Moruz, Alexandru et al., roPsalt: Re-evaluating the Sixteenth Century Romanian Psalters (aligned corpus), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. Ps 22:4
13. ^ Ungureanu, Mădălina; Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Moruz, Alexandru (eds.), eRomLex: The First Romanian Bilingual Dictionaries (17th century), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. s.v. mijloc