vechi

Forms

vechi m or n (feminine singular veche, plural vechi)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Late Latin veclus (“old”), the popular form of Latin vetulus (“elderly, oldish”).^[2][3][4][1] DER follows Diez, Cipariu, Pușcariu and the REW.^[4][5] The Latin word is a diminutive in -ulus of vetus (“old”).^[1][6]

The word survives in two sister branches: Aromanian veclju and Megleno-Romanian vecl'u.^[4][7][1] Its Romance cognates include Dalmatian vieklo, Italian vecchio, Occitan vielh, French vieil, Spanish viejo and Portuguese velho.^[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

MDA2 dates the adjective to the Codicele Voronețean (c. 1563–1583); Tiktin's earliest place is the Psaltirea Scheiană, Psalm 31:3.^[3][8] The verb vechi “to grow old” is older still, in the Psaltirea Hurmuzaki of the early 16th century.^[3] The old meaning included “aged” of living beings, the opposite of “young”.^[3]

Semantic evolution

For people bătrân took over the sense “old, aged”, and vechi is now said mostly of things.^[1][2] The old use survives in the religious phrase cel vechi de zile “the Ancient of Days”, a name for God, and in regional speech, where fată veche means “old maid”.^[3] Moldovan speech still uses it for people.^[9] From the sense “existing a long time” come “long-standing” (un prieten vechi) and “former”.^[2][3]

The Bible of 1688 has vechiul in “the old leaven” (1 Corinthians 5:7) and the verb vechit “worn out”.^[10] The verb gave way to învechi.^[4][3]

Timeline

• c. 1563–1583 – the adjective in the Codicele Voronețean.^[3]
• c. 1573–1578 – vechi in the Psaltirea Scheiană, Psalm 31:3.^[8]
• 1660 – vechiul glosses Slavonic ветхий “old” in a Slavonic–Romanian lexicon.^[11]
• 1688 – vechiul and vechit in the Bucharest Bible.^[10]

Meanings

Adjective

1. That has existed or lasted a long time; made long ago: lumea veche “the ancient world”, vorbă veche “an old saying”.^[2][1]
2. Used for a long time and worn: haine vechi “old clothes”.^[2]
3. (rare) Old, aged; of a person, long in a profession.^[2]
4. Known for a long time: un prieten vechi.^[2]
5. former; that held a post in the past.^[2]
6. Belonging to a distant past; outdated, no longer in use;^[2] (of people) old-fashioned in outlook.^[2]

Word family

• învechi
• vechime
• vechitură
• străvechi

Related words

• bătrân
• Latin vetulus

Usage notes

The feminine is veche and the plural vechi for all genders.^[1] The phrase din vechi “from of old” is dated.^[2][8]

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 g h i j k DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 1189
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 1445
4. ^ a b c d e 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. vechi
5. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 9291
6. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română, p. 324
8. ^ a b c Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. vechi
9. ^ Stati, Vasile (2003), Dicționar moldovenesc-românesc, Chișinău, p. s.v. vechi
10. ^ a b Biblia, adecă Dumnezeiasca Scriptură a ceii vechi și a ceii noao leage, București, 1688 (ed. 1988, tricentennial edition), p. 1 Corinthians 5:7
11. ^ 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. vechiul