portbagaj

Forms

portbagaj n (plural portbagaje)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French porte-bagages.^{[2][3][4][5][6][1]} The French word is a compound of porter (“to carry”) and bagages (“luggage”).^[1] DELR treats the word in the family of bagaj.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR dates the first record to 1937, in Rebreanu's Jurnal, where the word is still spelled as two parts, port-bagaj.^[2] DELR defines it as the compartment at the back of a car in which luggage is carried.^[2] MDA2's first record is later, the Academy's Dicționarul limbii romîne moderne of 1958.^[3]

Semantic evolution

In the 1950s the Academy's dictionaries defined it as a fitting of a vehicle, a car or a bicycle, on which or in which luggage is carried, so that it covered racks as well as compartments.^[7] DEX 2009 describes it as a space set aside for parcels or suitcases in the body of a vehicle, the sense of the car's boot or trunk.^[4] Wiktionary gives both senses, the boot of a car and a luggage rack.^[1] Dimitrescu records the compound portbagaj-auto “car luggage rack” in the press of 1967.^[8]

Timeline

• 1937 – port-bagaj in Rebreanu's Jurnal, the first record.^[2]
• 1955–1957 – defined as a luggage carrier of a car or bicycle.^[7]
• 1958 – in the Dicționarul limbii romîne moderne, MDA2's first record.^[3]
• 1967 – the compound portbagaj-auto in a newspaper.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. The boot or trunk of a car: a space in the body of a vehicle where luggage is stowed.^[4][3][1]
2. A luggage rack: a fitting on a vehicle, such as a car roof or a bicycle, on which luggage is carried.^[7][6][1]

Related words

• bagaj
• French porte-bagages

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2011–), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române (DELR), vol. I: A–B (2011), vol. II: C (2015–2018), București: Editura Academiei Române; continued online at delr.lingv.ro, p. s.v. bagaj
3. ^ a b c d Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 475
4. ^ a b c DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 851
5. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România
6. ^ a b Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual
7. ^ a b c Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 3, 507
8. ^ a b Dimitrescu, Florica (1997), Dicționar de cuvinte recente, 2nd ed., București: Logos (with the 3rd ed., 2013, in CLRE)