The Terminology Of Cosmetics In Romanian Dictionaries

The terminology of cosmetics (TC) puts the Romanian specialized cosmetic vocabulary in direct relationship with the common lexis and emphasizes the ability of the Romanian language to get richer through assimilated lexical loans (Frenchisms, Anglicisms, Italianisms) or by stimulating its lexical creativity (calques/loan translations, compounds, derived words etc). The present paper is based on the finding that the terminology of cosmetics has not yet been studied systematically in Romanian linguistics. Our approach is mainly descriptive and, on the one hand, it tackles the dynamic semantics of the “old” TC terms (mainly Frenchisms) with respect to the meaning of their first “appearance” in Romanian dictionaries. On the other hand, it analyzes the category of “absolute” novelties (concealer, gloss, lipstick, peeling, smokey eyes etc.) which includes Anglicisms still unrecorded in Romanian dictionaries, but whose (frequent) use is certified by the current general discourse of cosmetics and body care techniques. The corpus of the TC terms under investigation is taken from Romanian popular beauty catalogues and glossy magazines (Avon, Bravo Girl, Cool Girl, Cosmopolitan, Glamour) as well as from specialized training courses on cosmetics (Curs de cosmetică profesională, Manual de cosmetică). Therefore, our study follows the evolution of the terms from their emergence as neologisms in the dictionaries used, the relationship with the already existing synonyms in the language, the extension or reduction of their meaning etc. We consider that the investigation of the terminology of cosmetics in the Romanian language proves rewarding both for lexicology and semantics as well as for terminography and lexicography through highlighting new terms or new meanings, already validated by current usage. It is our hope for this research to be the starting point in the making of a mini-dictionary of cosmetic terms in current Romanian.