privire

Forms

privire f (plural priviri)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Romanian privi (“to look”) + -re, the long infinitive of the verb used as a noun of action.^[1][2][3][4] The verb's own origin is uncertain: MDA2 and Wiktionary take it from Old Church Slavonic правити (praviti), from Proto-Slavic *praviti (“to twist, turn”), while Ciorănescu, following Tiktin, prefers a Slavonic verb meaning “to turn”, the phrase being short for “to turn one's eyes”;^[5][1] Miklosich and Cihac thought of a Slavonic verb “to look”, which is hard to square with the sounds.^[5][1][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin dates the noun to the Codicele Voronețean of the 16th century.^[3] MDA2 has it from the New Testament of 1648, in the sense of directing one's eyes towards someone or something.^[4]

Semantic evolution

From the act of looking the noun came to mean the way someone looks, a glance, and concretely the eyes: a sorbi cu privirea “to devour with one's eyes”.^[2][7][8] It also meant a view or prospect, as of a house with a fine outlook, and the field of vision.^[7][4] A figurative sense “respect, regard” was common in the 19th century in în toate privirile “in every respect”, where today privință is used; it survives in cu privire la “with regard to”.^[3][2] Old variants are prăvire and previre.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 1563-1583 – in the Codicele Voronețean, the first record.^[3]
• 1648 – in the New Testament.^[4]
• 1825 – the Lexicon de la Buda glosses it with Latin spectatio, contemplatio and German Betrachtung.^[9]
• 1939 – Scriban records privire “prospect, view”.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act of looking and its result; sight, the faculty of seeing; a way of looking, a look or glance: o privire caldă “a warm look”.^[2][10][1]
2. (concrete) The eyes: și-a ridicat privirea “she raised her eyes”.^[2]
3. A brief examination or overall assessment: o privire de ansamblu “an overview”.^[2][11]
4. (in the phrase cu privire la) With regard to, concerning.^[2][10]

Related words

• privi
• privință
• priveliște
• privitor

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 878
3. ^ a b c d Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. privire
4. ^ a b c d e Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 553
5. ^ a b Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 552
6. ^ 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. privi
7. ^ a b c Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 1055
8. ^ Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 1, 514
9. ^ Lesicon românescu-latinescu-ungurescu-nemțescu quare de mai mulți autori, în cursul a trideci și mai multor ani s-au lucrat (1825), Buda: Typographia Universității (the Lexicon of Buda, ed. Petru Maior et al.), p. 551
10. ^ a b Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. privire
11. ^ Breban, Vasile (1980), Dicționar al limbii române contemporane de uz curent, București: Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, p. 470