Animals & Nature1 min ago
Word origin - French
8 Answers
Does anyone know the origin of the word 'gendarme'?
I thought it might be 'gent d'arme' - am I off-key here?
I thought it might be 'gent d'arme' - am I off-key here?
Answers
Best Answer
No best answer has yet been selected by abstibus. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.All fairly close... Online Etymology Dictionary says: 1540s, "mounted trooper," from French contraction (14c.) of gens d'armes "men at arms," later applied to military police (1796 in English). Gens is plural of gent "nation, people," from L. gentem (nom. gens) "race, nation, people" (see genus). Related: Gendarmerie. French also had gens de (la) robe "lawyers," sometimes borrowed in English.
As C outlines above, the original plural form, gens d'armes - men of arms - gave rise to the singular form, gendarme, and that in turn produced the current plural, gendarmes...a rather peculiar threeway process!
My apologies, Anne, but just a quick word with C.
On matters French particularly and so close to the anniversary of D-Day, I have to tell you that a friend and I hit the Normandy beaches LAST week and two of my sons and I will be doing so again NEXT week! We had and will have culinary/bibulous rather than military targets!
My apologies, Anne, but just a quick word with C.
On matters French particularly and so close to the anniversary of D-Day, I have to tell you that a friend and I hit the Normandy beaches LAST week and two of my sons and I will be doing so again NEXT week! We had and will have culinary/bibulous rather than military targets!