Www.atilf.fr/perso/buchi What are etymological (and etymographical) units made of: vocables or...

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What are etymological (and etymographical) units made of: vocables or lexemes?

Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Research Institute for LinguisticsBudapest, January 27 2015

Éva Buchi (ATILF/CNRS & Université de Lorraine)

Analyse et Traitement Informatique de la Langue Française

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Metalexicological and metalexicographical topic

Theoretical in its essence, but poses practical problems to practitioners of historical lexicology and lexicographyATILF lab (Nancy, France)

Dictionnaire Étymologique Roman (DÉRom)

European Master in Lexicography


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Etymological dictionary

‘DICTIONARY in which are traced back to their earliest appropriate forms and meanings’(Hartmann & James, Dictionary of lexicography, 1998)

words

Lacks technical rigour ambiguous

Threefold terminology established within the theoretical framework of Meaning-text theory (Mel’čuk 2012: 1: 21-44)


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MTT provides a threefold terminology

Wordform ‘segmental linguistic sign that is autonomous and minimal, i.e., that is not made up of other wordforms’

Lexeme ‘set of wordforms, and phrases, that are all inflectional variants’

Vocable ‘set of lexical units –lexemes or idioms– whose signifiers are identical, whose signifieds display a significant intersection, and whose syntactics are sufficiently similar’

TABLE1

TABLE

table1 SINGULAR ~ tables1 PLURAL

TABLE2 ‘arrangement of data’

TABLE3 ‘surface of a

stone’


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Schematic representation

table2‘arrangement of data in rows and colums’SINGULAR

tables2 ‘arrangements of data in rows and colums’PLURAL

table3 ‘upper flat surface of a cut precious stone’SINGULAR

tables3 ‘upper flat surfaces of a cut precious stone’PLURAL

table1 ‘article of furniture consisting of a flat top and legs’SINGULAR

tables1 ‘articles of furniture consisting of a flat top and legs’PLURAL

Wordforms

Vocable TABLE

Lexeme TABLE1

Lexeme TABLE2

Lexeme TABLE3


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Etymological dictionaries

‘DICTIONARY in which are traced back to their earliest appropriate forms and meanings’(Hartmann & James, Dictionary of lexicography, 1998)

words

Vocables?

Current practice in etymological dictionaries?

Wordforms?

Lexemes?

No indication in theoretical work


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The problem only presents itself with polysemous vocables

Example: Spanish ESCAPARATE m.n.

ESCAPARATE1 m.n. ‘glass-door cabinet used for displaying delicate things’

ESCAPARATE2 m.n. ‘shop window used for displaying samples of what is sold in the shop’


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Corominas, Breve dicc. etimológico de la lengua castellana, 19733

Borrowing from Old Dutch schaprade n. ‘closet (in particular kitchen cupboard)’


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Corominas’s approach is in accordance with Untermann’s

“For me, etymology is defined as: establishing and describing the process which produces a new sequence of phonemes and assigns a meaning to it, using given vocabulary and given grammatical means, in order to meet a requirement which emerges”(Krisch 2010: 317, quoting Untermann 1975: 105)

Derivatives and compounds merit an etymology Semantic evolutions do notThis choice in favour of the vocable is quite commonCounterexamples?


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Kluge, Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 200224

1) ‘Cue’; 2) ‘headword’; 3) ‘keyword’; 4) ‘hurtful remark’

Vocable!

Homonyms!

4)


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TLF (Trésor de la langue française, ATILF 1971-1994) s.v. agio

AGIO1 ‘excess value of one currency over another’

AGIO2 ‘bank fees (interest, commission, exchange)’

AGIO3 ‘dishonest speculation (stock exchange)’

Etymology: “Empr[unt] à l’ital[ien] aggio”

“Borrowing from Italian aggio”

Vocable!


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Etymology of AGIO revised in the context of TLF-Étym

TLF-Étym = Steinfeld, Nadine (dir.) (2005–): Trésor de la Langue Française Étymologique (TLF-Étym). Nancy: ATILF: http://www.atilf.fr/tlf-etym

Selective revision of the etymologies contained in the TLFi (Trésor de la Langue Française informatisé)

Entry agio compiled by Franz Rainer, professor at Vienna University of Economics and Business


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First attestations

AGIO1 ‘excess value of one currency over another’ (1679)

AGIO2 ‘bank fees (interest, commission, exchange)’ (1723)

AGIO3 ‘dishonest speculation (stock exchange)’ (1727)


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Italian AGGIO

Cortelazzo/Zolli: Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana (19992):

ø AGGIO ‘bank fees’(Italian SPESE DI COMMISSIONE)ø AGGIO ‘dishonest speculation’(Italian SPECULAZIONE DISONESTA)

[AGGIO2 ‘discount on the amount of a tax granted to a state employee’ (1892)]

AGGIO1 ‘excess value of one currency over another’ (1498)

AGIO1

AGIO2

AGIO3


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Rainer 2011 in TLF-Étym

AGIO1 ‘excess value of one currency over another’ 1679

AGIO2 ‘bank fees (interest, commission, exchange)’ 1723

AGIO3 ‘dishonest speculation (stock exchange)’ 1727

Borrowing from Italian AGGIO1 ‘excess value of one currency over another’ 1498

Internal creation: semantic evolution from French AGIO1 (common denominator: ‘commission’)

Internal creation: semantic evolution from French AGIO2 (common denominator: ‘profit’)

Three etymologies!


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AGIO3 coined in the aftermath of the Law affair

James Law (1671-1729)Scottish economist, Controller Generalof Finances of France

Became a millionaire by issuing huge amounts of share certificates of his Mississipi Company to the FrenchThese shares were ultimately rendered worthless, and initially inflated speculation about their worth led to a chaotic economic collapse in France in the 1720Coining of AGIO3 ‘dishonest speculation’ strongly linked to a French economic context


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What are etymological units made of: vocables or lexemes?

Dictionaries are made up of vocables like Spanish ESCAPARATE, German STICHWORT1 and STICHWORT2, and French AGIO

But Spanish ESCAPARATE2 ‘shop window’ cannot be considered a Dutch borrowing, and French AGIO3 ‘dishonest speculation’ cannot be considered an Italian borrowing

These lexemes deserve to be individually etymologized (as internal creations)


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For this reason

I advocate a contrario that individual lexemes, not whole vocables, are best hypostatized as etymological (and etymographical) units

This seems quite obvious: etymologies which put the different lexemes of a vocable to the centre of their attention are better etymologies

Then why did the discipline of etymology have to wait for 2015 for this finding to be put forward?


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The answer lies in the terminology we use

Ultimately, in our conceptualization of the units which constitue the lexicon of a language

Only “words” = linguistic signs = sets of signifiers, signifieds, and syntactic properties may and should be etymologized

If ESCAPARATE2 ‘shop window’ = “meaning” of the “word” ESCAPARATE, there is no need for etymologizing it

If ESCAPARATE2 ‘shop window’ = lexeme = set of signifier, signified, and syntactic propertiesThen the stage is set for the lexeme becoming the etymological (and etymographical) unit


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Case study: Engl. HARMONICA and related nouns

OED3 (2000-):HARMONICA1 ‘musical instrument (invented by B. Franklin) consisting of a series of rotating glass bowls of differing sizes played by touching the dampened edges with a finger, glass harmonica’ (since 1762) HARMONICA2 ‘small rectangular wind instrument with free reeds recessed in air slots from which tones are sounded by exhaling and inhaling, mouth organ’ (since ?) HARMONICA3 ‘component of a pipe organ that admits pressurized air to a set of organ pipes, organ stop’ (since 1852)


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Etymology

OED3:Etymology: feminine of Latin harmonicus harmonic adj. and n., used subst.

First testimony:1762 B. Franklin Let. 13 July in Exper. & Observ. Electr. (1769) 433 In honor of your musical language, I have borrowed from it the name of this instrument, calling it the ArmonicaBenjamin Franklin (1706–1790), one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat


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Identity of the addressee = important lead

Father Beccarià from Turin

Borrowing from Italian armonico adj. ‘having a pleasing combination of notes, harmonious’Written form harmonica from 1777 on:written Latinization (= a form of adaptation: this does not make it a borrowing from Latin)HARMONICA1 ‘glass harmonica’ (since 1762): borrowing from Italian (with instant and subsequent adaptations)


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German HARMONIKA

DFWB2 (1995-):

HARMONIKA1 ‘glass harmonica’ (since 1772 [Harmonica]):borrowing from English HARMONICA1

HARMONIKA2 ‘small rectangular wind instrument with free reeds recessed in air slots from which tones are sounded by exhaling and inhaling, mouth organ’ (since 1830 [Mund-Harmonika; Harmonika since 1880]) HARMONIKA3 ‘portable keyboard wind instrument in which the wind is forced past free reeds by means of a hand-operated bellows, accordion’ (since 1844)


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No etymologies are provided for HARMONIKA2/3

Extralinguistic (historical) knowledge:the accordion was invented in 1829 by Cyrill Demian in Vienna, who patented it

HARMONIKA3 ‘accordion’ (since 1844)Internal German creation (semantic innovation)

HARMONICA2 ‘mouth organ’ (since 1830 [Mund-Harmonika ; Harmonika since 1880])Seems to be an internal creation as well (semantic intersection: /wind instrument/)The compound Mund-Harmonika seems to indiate it was coined on HARMONIKA3


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Back to English

HARMONICA2 ‘mouth organ’ (since ?)Probably borrowing from German

This hypothesis should be tested by analyzing the first written testimonies of the lexeme (which the OED3 does not provide)

If HARMONICA1 ‘glass harmonica’ was still in use when HARMONICA2 ‘mouth organ’ appeared (which seems to be the case), rather than a borrowing, it should be considered a loan meaning


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Hungarian HARMONIKA

EWU (1993-1997): borrowing from German

HARMONIKA1 ‘glass harmonica’ (from 1810 [Harmonikát])

HARMONIKA2 ‘mouth organ’ (since 1845 [Hármonika])

HARMONIKA3 ‘accordion’ (since 1881)

Three independent borrowings (or rather a borrowing and two loan meanings)!


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To conclude

Engl. HARMONICA1 ‘glass harmonica’ (1762) < It.

Borrowing from Italian

Engl. HARMONICA3 ‘organ stop’ (1852): internal creation

Germ. HARMONIKA1

‘glass harmonica’ (1772) < Engl.

Germ. HARMONIKA2 ‘mouth organ’ (1830): internal creationGerm. HARMONIKA3 ‘accordion’ (1844): internal creation

Hung. HARMONIKA1

‘glass harmonica’ (1810) < Germ.

Hung. HARMONIKA2 ‘mouth organ’ (1845)< Germ.Hung. HARMONIKA3 ‘accordion’ (1881) < Germ.

Borrowing from English

Borrowing from German

Engl. HARMONICA2 ‘mouth organ’ (?) < Germ. (?)

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