Historical linguist on grzeczny (‘polite’) and grzeczność (‘politeness’)

Abstract

The article presents the etymology and history of two basic terms of language etiquette: grzeczny (‘polite’) and grzeczność (‘politeness’). The author shows how the semantics of the noun rzecz , which was derived from the verb rzec , evolved to the meaning correspondent to the Latin noun res. From rzeczy the prepositional phrase was created k rzeczy → krzeczy → grzeczny (vocalization before the word-initial sonorant) which implicated the meaning ‘precisely, sensibly, properly’, and the subsequent grzeczny , originally ‘suitable, proper’, then ‘sensible’, and finally ‘polite’ (from the 17th c., widespread from the 18th c.). Grzeczność , derived from the word grzeczny with its latter definition, established and spreaded in the 18th c. the meaning still valid nowadays: ‘courtesy, politeness, good manners’.