ghezzo

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from Byzantine Greek Αἰγύπτιος (Aigúptios, “Egyptian”), apparently early enough for the Greek υ to have still been pronounced /ø/ or /e/ yet late enough for the borrowing to escape the Romance palatalisation of velars before front vowels.[1] Compare gheppio < αἰγυπιός (aigupiós). Documented in Italian since 1282.[2] Doublet of egizio.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈɡet.t͡so/
  • Rhymes: -ettso
  • Hyphenation: ghéz‧zo

Adjective

ghezzo (feminine ghezza, masculine plural ghezzi, feminine plural ghezze) (archaic)

  1. dark-skinned
  2. (by extension) a species of bird
  3. (by extension) a species of mushroom

Noun

ghezzo (feminine ghezza, masculine plural ghezzi, feminine plural ghezze) (archaic)

  1. person with dark skin (especially said of Berbers and Abyssinians)

References
  1. Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm. 1890. Grammaire des langues romanes, vol. I: Phonétique. Paris: Welter. Pages 30̵–31.
  2. “ghezzo”, in TLIO – Tesoro della lingua italiana delle origini

Further reading
  • ghezzo in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
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