English
burlesque
Burlesque comes from Italian burlesco ‘parodic’, and goes back to burla ‘joke’.
- Italianc. 1300–presentburla‘joke’
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentburlesco‘parodic’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentburlesque
- Englishearliest quotation 1678same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Italianc. 1300–presentburla‘joke’
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentburlesco‘parodic’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentburlesque
- Englishearliest quotation 1678same form
Earliest quotation: 1678, Edward Stillingfleet, A Sermon preached on the Fast-Day: “They burlesqued the prophet Jeremiah's words, and turned the…”
Linked words
through Late Latin burra ‘nonsense, trickery’
Today it means
adj Parodical; parodic
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Italian burla / burlesque