La fraise : histoire d’un accessoire et de sa terminologie

Abstract

Between specialised and general language, the domain of fashion is of great interest for the study of terminology: a terminology that, following the trends of an era, evolves over time and space. In this context, this study focuses on a fashion accessory of ancient origin and on its terminology: the ruff.Very fashionable in the 16th and 17th century, after having symbolised the austerity and rigour of the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation, the ruff became a symbol of elegance and power. Nowadays, some fashion companies have reintroduced this accessory whose value has changed: contemporary ruffs are extravagant accessories for their shapes and sizes, that inevitably evoke the 16th and 17th century. The study of ruffs requires heterogeneous sources, such as manuals of fashion history, technical documents and lexicographic resources. Moreover, iconographic sources – paintings, sculptures, sketches – are to be collected and analysed, since they clarify similitudes and differences between different types of ruffs. After having described the most important sources for this study, the history of ruff is presented into details, in order to describe its different models. Then, a terminological analysis is conducted: the French terminology of this accessory is presented, with a focus on the difference between the termsfraise, collerette and gorgerette. The French terminology is compared to the Italian one and a French-Italian glossary is prepared in order to answer to the needs of experts of communication, translator and people working in the fashion field.