The Latin Neuter Plurals in Romance - Page ON

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find the meaning ‘leaf’, as in Rum. foaie, Vegl. fuaglia, Friul. fueie, It. foglia
(note that this can also be a plural in the north, where -AS > -a, whereas in
Lucanian (SIt.) it is still a collective), Fr. feuille, Prov. folha/fuelha, Cat. fulla,
Sp. hoja (Moz. fulya, OArag. fuelya/fuylla), Ptg. folha, Log. fodza, Camp. folla;
in the same way FOLIUM is found in most areas with a transferred meaning such
as ‘sheet of paper’, so It. foglio, OFr. fueil, Prov. folh/fuelh, Cat. full, Moz. folyo,
Ptg. folho, OLog. fogiu, Camp, follu, as well as the Surs. fegl, Eng. fögl already
quoted (Rum. foaie and Sp. hoja do service for this meaning as well, as does
modern Fr. feuille). As for FRONDIA, it is preserved as Rum. sing. frunză ‘leaf
(more popular than foaie in the literal sense), SIt. fronza/frunza ‘first green
leaves’, WSp. froncia/francia ‘brushwood (of broom)’, OPtg. fronça, now
franças ‘small branches’, ‘ends of branches’; cf. also UEng. fruonzla, LEng.
fronsla ‘pine-needles’.
LIGNA, which appears in the late forms “de ligna” (Chrodegangus), “ubi
ligna desuper ardet” (Gl. Reich.), has been preserved both as plural and singular
in the sense of a supply of wood, particularly firewood, as opposed to LIGNUM,
which denotes wood as a material. In Rumanian lemne is plural, and so we find
phrases like “taietor de lemne” (‘woodcutter’), “lemne de ars” (‘firewood’)
contrasting with “gravură in lemn” (‘woodcut’). Italian also has the collective
pl. le legna (standard language and Bolognese), as opposed to i legni ‘pieces of
wood’, ‘ships’, ‘woodwinds’; but it can also use the word legna as a collective
singular, with a pl. le legne, which can also be taken as a dialectal form of le
legna, while another plural form is Sic. lignira ‘beams’. Rhaeto-Romance has
the usual singular collective forms, Surs. la lenna, Eng. la laina (with the
double pl. las lainas), as opposed to the pl. ils lenns, ils lains. Old French has
leigne (m. or f.), as opposed to lein ‘ship’; it is also found in the double plural
form les leignes. In the other languages the position is similar, with the pairs of