rușine

Forms

rușine f (plural rușini)^[1]

Etymology

Its origin is disputed.^[2][3][1] Ciorănescu lists it among the derivatives of the verb, from Romanian rușina (“to shame”), which is formed from Romanian roși (“to redden”) + -ina with an expressive suffix, as clătina is formed on clăti: Spitzer's explanation, which Ciorănescu finds the best.^[2] Wiktionary also takes the verb as the probable source.^[1] roși is from roșu (“red”), from Latin russus (“red”).^[1][4]

The other explanations start from the noun.^[2] Pușcariu and the REW take it as an adjective used as a noun, Vulgar Latin *rōsīnus (“rose-coloured”), from Latin rosa (“rose”),^[5][2] and Capidan derives the Megleno-Romanian word from the same form.^[6] Pascu proposed *russiō and Candrea *rosiō.^[2] Tiktin explains it as contracted from ⟨*rușiciune⟩, a noun formed on the same verb.^[7] MDA2 calls it of unknown origin, and MDA2, DEX and DLR compare Latin roseus (“rosy”).^[3][8][9]

The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian arushini, Megleno-Romanian rușǫni and Istro-Romanian rușire.^[2][10][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki of the early 16th century, where the psalmist says that his shame is before him every day.^[3][9] Coresi's psalter of 1570 has it several times, as at Psalm 56:4.^[11]

Semantic evolution

The core sense is the feeling of shame, with modesty and shyness beside it, and the disgrace that causes it.^[8][7] Pușcariu saw the original sense of redness in the curse să-ți fie rușine obrazului “may your face redden with shame”.^[5] Old texts and popular speech also use the word, often in the plural, for the genitals, as Dosoftei does.^[7][8] The Lexicon of Buda (1825) gives all three senses: shame, disgrace and the parts of shame.^[12]

Many phrases are built on it: fără rușine “shamelessly”, a face pe cineva de rușine “to put someone to shame”, a muri de rușine “to die of shame”.^[8][7] The plant name rușinea-fetei “the girl's shame” belongs to two wild herbs of the carrot family.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 1500–1520 – the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki, the first record.^[3][9]
• 1570 – Coresi's psalter, Psalm 56:4.^[11]
• 1581 – Coresi's Carte de învățătură.^[9]
• 1649 – in Mardarie's Slavonic–Romanian lexicon.^[13]
• 1688 – the Bucharest Bible, more than sixty times.^[14]
• 1825 – the Lexicon of Buda, with the senses “shame”, “disgrace” and “genitals”.^[12]

Meanings

Noun

1. shame, embarrassment: the painful feeling caused by a failure or a mistake: fără rușine “shamelessly”.^[8][3][1]
2. modesty, reserve, shyness.^[8][1]
3. Mockery, insult: a face de rușine “to put to shame”.^[8]
4. A cause of shame: disgrace, dishonour.^[8][1]
5. (popular) The genitals.^[8][7]

Word family

• rușinos

Related words

• rușina
• roși
• roșu
• Aromanian arushini

Usage notes

MDA2 and DLR also record a rușine that is a form of rășină “resin”.^[3][9]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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. rușina
3. ^ a b c d e f Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 739
4. ^ 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. roșu
5. ^ a b Pușcariu, Sextil (1905), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der rumänischen Sprache I: Lateinisches Element, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. 133
6. ^ a b Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română, p. 253
7. ^ a b c d e Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. rușíne
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 968
9. ^ a b c d e Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. rușine
10. ^ Cunia, Tiberius (2008), Dictsiunar a limbãljei armãneascã, Editsii Timpurarã (after T. Papahagi, Ș. Mihăileanu and I. Dalametra; online at dixionline.net), p. 135
11. ^ 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 56:4
12. ^ a b 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. 600
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. rușine
14. ^ Biblia, adecă Dumnezeiasca Scriptură a ceii vechi și a ceii noao leage, București, 1688 (ed. 1988, tricentennial edition), p. Preoția 18:10