Parvenu

Use this forum to discuss past Good Words.
User avatar
Dr. Goodword
Site Admin
Posts: 7419
Joined: Wed Feb 02, 2005 9:28 am
Location: Lewisburg, PA
Contact:

Parvenu

Postby Dr. Goodword » Fri Jan 14, 2022 8:36 pm

• parvenu •


Pronunciation: pahr-ve-nuHear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A member of the nouveaux riches who has suddenly risen to a much higher income level but is rejected by those of older wealth, ostensibly for a lack of the social graces associated with their social plane.

Notes: We contrast parvenus with Old Money, those who made their money the old fashioned way—by inheriting it. The established elite refers to the newcomers to wealth exclusively in French terms like parvenu and nouveau riche, which parvenus are considered less likely to understand. Parvenu may be used as an adjective, as 'someone's parvenu antics at the cotillion'.

In Play: Wealthy people distinguish themselves from parvenus by treating them condescendingly: "Humphrey Dumpling was scorned as a parvenu by the elite society of New Monia even though he had more money than all of its members combined." (Then again, maybe they shunned him because he had more money than they did.) "Morley Quiddity was much too parvenu to develop an interest in the balls and fêtes that his wealthy neighbors so religiously attended."

Word History: Today's Good Word is the past participle of French parvenir "to arrive", which goes back to Latin pervenire "to come up, arrive", based on per "through" + venire "to come". Per goes back to a Proto-Indo-European (PIE) root meaning "forward, through" that came down to English as for and fore, as well as first. In Greek it emerges as peri "around, near", found in borrowings periscope and periodontist. Venire "to come" appears in the phrase, venite adoremus "come let us adore him", in the Christmas carol, "Come all Ye Faithful" (Adeste Fideles). It goes back to a PIE root gwa- "come, go", which is also the source of English come and go, believe it or not. (We would like to thank Kurt Bonifay and Jackie Strauss for sharing with us their established wealth of Good Words like today's.)
• The Good Dr. Goodword

bbeeton
Senior Lexiterian
Posts: 552
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2020 11:34 am
Location: Providence, RI

Re: Parvenu

Postby bbeeton » Sat Jan 15, 2022 11:30 am

A synonymous term, "arriviste", is also stolen from French, so this seems to be parallel in both languages.

David Myer
Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 1140
Joined: Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:21 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Parvenu

Postby David Myer » Wed Jan 19, 2022 2:52 am

It is interesting how many French words we use in English to describe style. Parvenus are often gauche, for example. I suppose it is because in 1066 when the French arrived and took over, the English being mostly, mere peasants, were less refined than their French conquerors who had developed a whole range of words which the English had no need for and so hadn't yet developed.

Suave
Chic
Debonair
Nonchalant
Blasé
Naive
Banal
Adroit
Demure
Avant garde
Louche
Coy
Hauteur
Chagrin
and lots more

I must beware of becoming macaronic.

Philip Hudson
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 2784
Joined: Thu Feb 23, 2006 4:41 am
Location: Texas

Re: Parvenu

Postby Philip Hudson » Wed Jan 19, 2022 10:48 pm

I discovered the word "chic" in a Life Magazine ad when I was perhaps 8 years old [about 1944]. I wasn't impressed then and I ain't impressed now with these fancy words intruding and attempting to smother the good ole English language with words of the froggish [that is French] palabra. it's been a=goin' on since 1066, but I say, down with them all! None of that is tolerated here in the hinterlands. Now take that! With a little tongue in cheek. :lol:
It is dark at night, but the Sun will come up and then we can see.

David Myer
Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 1140
Joined: Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:21 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Parvenu

Postby David Myer » Thu Jan 20, 2022 1:52 am

Excellent Phillip. Except that we use these words because there is no identical word in English. What's the English for 'chic'? And for most of the words in my list. 'Gauche' doesn't have a translation in one word. The best I can do is 'Socially clumsy' but it's not the same. The closest we can get to 'demure' is 'coy' perhaps, but that's French too.

Philip Hudson
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 2784
Joined: Thu Feb 23, 2006 4:41 am
Location: Texas

Re: Parvenu

Postby Philip Hudson » Thu Jan 20, 2022 4:34 pm

I know that the English language, the greatest artifact that God has allowed mankind to create, is richer because of words borrowed from almost every language in the world. Some we could do without in our speaking vocabulary, but all contribute to the greatness of English. The word "gauche," for example, is a word we don't really need but can still use to our advantage. Whenever I see it, I remember that it sort-of means left-handed in Frog language. It also means the wrong side of the Seine River in France.
It is dark at night, but the Sun will come up and then we can see.

David Myer
Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 1140
Joined: Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:21 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Parvenu

Postby David Myer » Thu Jan 20, 2022 8:21 pm

Yes, I have long marvelled at the curiousness of the concept of a 'left bank' of a river. Doesn't it depend which way you are facing? Who decides which is the left and which the right? Is it always left as the river runs to sea?

User avatar
Slava
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 8042
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2006 9:31 am
Location: Finger Lakes, NY

Re: Parvenu

Postby Slava » Thu Jan 20, 2022 8:56 pm

I've always understood that to be the case; right and left as the river flows.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

User avatar
Dr. Goodword
Site Admin
Posts: 7419
Joined: Wed Feb 02, 2005 9:28 am
Location: Lewisburg, PA
Contact:

Re: Parvenu

Postby Dr. Goodword » Fri Jan 21, 2022 12:17 am

Others have estimated that half the English vocabulary was borrowed from French. My experience is that the percentage might be greater. The same is true of Urdu and Arabic. Urdu is distinguished from Hindi by the fact that is vocabulary was heavily borrowed from Arabic.
• The Good Dr. Goodword

bnjtokyo
Lexiterian
Posts: 384
Joined: Thu Jul 07, 2016 7:16 pm

Re: Parvenu

Postby bnjtokyo » Fri Jan 21, 2022 8:07 pm

Geographers have agreed to define "right" and "left" with respect to rivers facing down stream, in the direction of flow. When and why they did that, I have not been able to determine, but it is a useful convention. You might find this piece from Nature on the topic interesting.
https://en.public-welfare.com/4170205-t ... ht-or-left

David Myer
Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 1140
Joined: Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:21 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Parvenu

Postby David Myer » Fri Jan 21, 2022 9:32 pm

Useful article from an extraordinary site. It appears to be Russian in origin.

I am happy with its explanation of left and right banks. But I do struggle with the concept that in the Northern hemisphere the left side is the flood plain and the right side the steep bank; and the reverse in the Southern hemisphere. I will have to do some more research on that! Instinct says that the flood plain will be on the inside of the bend and since most rivers have lots of u-bends, the left bank will alternate between inside and outside of the bend. And again, a river that flows broadly West will seem likely to be different from a river that flows East. But let me research, rather than postulate. What a rabbit warren this one is.


Return to “Good Word Discussion”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Ahrefs [Bot] and 87 guests