"song" in seven languages
Meaningsong
Spanish
/kanˈθjon/
fem.learned
Usually classed as semi-learned: popular -TIŌNEM gave -zón, as in razón.
French
/ʃɑ̃sɔ̃/
fem.inherited
Italian
/kanˈtsone/
fem.inherited
Portuguese
/ˈmuzikɐ/
fem.other source · Latin MŪSICA (from Greek mousikḗ)
Canção (CANTIŌNEM) exists but sounds poetic; Brazilians call a song a música.
Romanian
/ˈkɨntek/
neut.other source · Latin CANTICUM 'song' (from CANERE, the same root)
Catalan
/kənˈso/
fem.inherited
Catalan drops final -n after a stressed vowel: CANTIŌNEM → cançó.
English
/sɔŋ/
native English · Old English sang
The Latin ancestor
CANTIŌNEM‘singing, song (from CANERE 'to sing')’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
French chanson shows the popular fate of -TIŌNEM (-son, as in raison) and of ca- (cha-); Spanish canción kept the Latin ending.
English relatives: chant, canto, cantor, incantation
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEsta canción es preciosa.
- frCette chanson est magnifique.
- itQuesta canzone è bellissima.
- ptEssa música é linda.
- roCântecul ăsta e frumos.
- caAquesta cançó és preciosa.
- enThis song is beautiful.
The Latin family
CAN-, CANT-· sing
CANERE 'to sing' was replaced in speech by its frequentative CANTĀRE, which survives everywhere. French palatalized CA- to cha- (chanter, chanson, enchanter), and English borrowed those French shapes; Spanish and Italian kept the hard c. Portuguese and Catalan kept the hard c too; Romanian cânta raised the a before n to â.
CANTĀREto sing
escantarfrchanteritcantareptcantarrocântacacantarenchant
CANTIŌNEMsong
escanciónfrchansonitcanzoneptcançãocacançó
CANTUMa song, singing
escantofrchantitcantoptcantorocântcacantencanto
INCANTĀREto sing a spell over
esencantarfrenchanteritincantareptencantarroîncântacaencantarenenchant
ACCENTUMa 'singing to', intonation
esacentofraccentitaccentoptacentoroaccentcaaccentenaccent