natură

Forms

natură f (plural naturi)^[1] A popular variant is nătură, the form of the first record in Neculce: „de pe cum îi era nătura lui” “as was his nature”.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin nātūra (“birth; nature”), taken in the 18th century, and later also borrowed from French nature.^[3][4] MDA2 and the DLR name Latin, Italian natura, French and German Natur together, DEX the same four with the French word first, and Wiktionary French and Latin.^[2][5][6][1] The Latin word is formed on nāscor (“to be born”) with the suffix -tūra, and meant first “birth”.^[1][7][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

MDA2 and Tiktin date the first record to 1733, a calendar, where it means the material world: natura răcoroasă “cool nature”.^[2][4][5] Ciorănescu names Ion Neculce as the first author to use it, in the form nătură, for a man's character.^[3][4]

Semantic evolution

Șincai explained it with the native word fire: „natura sau firea”.^[5] Its senses followed Latin and French: the physical world and everything in it, the laws that govern it, and the inborn character of a being or a thing.^[5][6] A 1785 text says that long nails on the fingers show a fine nature.^[4]

In the early 19th century the plural naturi meant dues paid in kind, in documents of 1815 and 1817; the modern în natură “in kind, not in money” continues that use.^[4][6] Painting has natură moartă “still life” and după natură “from life”.^[6][2] In popular speech natură can mean a vice or a bad habit, and a avea natură “to be violent, quarrelsome”.^[9]

Timeline

• 1733 – natura “nature, the material world” in a calendar, the first record.^[2][4]
• 1785 – “a fine nature” in a text printed by Strilbițchi.^[4]
• 1815 – naturi “dues in kind” in a document.^[4]
• 1848 – in Negulici's dictionary of neologisms.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. nature: the material world, the universe; all beings and things in it; in a narrower sense, the physical surroundings, with plants, landforms and climate;^[6][2] științele naturii “the natural sciences”.^[6][2]
2. natură moartă: a still life;^[6][2] după natură “from life, from a model”.^[6][2]
3. în natură: in reality, in person; also in kind, in goods and not in money: a plăti în natură “to pay in kind”.^[6][2]
4. The laws by which the universe develops; the universe seen as an active, creative force.^[6]
5. The qualities a being has from birth; its temperament, character: e de natură veselă “he is cheerful by nature”.^[6][11]
6. The specific character of a thing, its quality;^[6] de natură să... “likely to, such as to”;^[6] e în natura lucrurilor “it is only natural”.^[6]

Word family

• natural
• naturalist
• naturaliza
• naturalism
• denatura
• supranatural

Related words

• fire
• naște
• Latin nātūra

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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. 2, 98
3. ^ a b c 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. natură
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. natură
5. ^ a b c d Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. natură
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 691
7. ^ Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 650
8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ Iordan, Iorgu (1983), Dicționar al numelor de familie românești, București: Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, p. 325
10. ^ Negulici, I. D. (1848), Vocabular romînesc de toate vorbele streine întroduse pînă acum în limba romînească și de toate cuvintele ce s-ar mai putea introduce încă, București, p. s.v. natură
11. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. natură