Ancestors

Written by Yoïn van Spijk on 2025-01-30 at 19:16

Italian 'quello', Portuguese 'aquele', and Spanish 'aquel', all demonstrative adjectives meaning "that", have an interesting origin.

The part '(a)qu-' comes from Popular Latin 'eccum', meaning "look".

This word came to be used as an intensifier of demonstratives: 'eccum ille' ('look, that') became 'quello', 'aquele', and 'aquel'.

Italian even preserves 'eccum' as a standalone word: 'Ecco la ragione!' ("That's the reason!").

Click my new graphic to learn all about Romance demonstratives.

1/

=> View attached media

=> More informations about this toot | More toots from yvanspijk@toot.community

Written by Mark Dominus on 2025-01-30 at 20:37

@yvanspijk I thought that in Latin "iste" had a pejorative sense, analogous to "that" in "that boyfriend of yours",

=> More informations about this toot | More toots from mjd@mathstodon.xyz

Toot

Written by Yoïn van Spijk on 2025-01-30 at 20:39

@mjd It's indeed one of the possible uses, but not its main meaning.

=> More informations about this toot | More toots from yvanspijk@toot.community

Descendants