Wiktionary

chignon

English

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Etymology

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Borrowed from French chignon circa 1780, when the hairstyle was in fashion.[1]

Pronunciation

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Noun

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chignon (plural chignons)

  1. A roll or twist of hair worn at the nape of the neck; a bun.
    Synonyms: bun, cock-up
    • 1867, “Chignonology”, in Living Age, volume 92, page 761:
      The chignon cannot be confounded with other artificialities which ladies put on and off.
    • 1914 [1878], Madame Du Barry, London: J. Long, translation of La du Barry by Edmond de Goncourt and Jules de Goncourt, page 88:
      Madame du Barry could not merely be credited with inventing the chignons which bear her name.
    • 1977, Agatha Christie, chapter 2, in An Autobiography, part II, London: Collins, →ISBN:
      If I close my eyes I can see Marie today as I saw her then. Round, rosy face, snub nose, dark hair piled up in a chignon.
    • 2021, Becky S. Li, Howard I. Maibach, Ethnic Skin and Hair and Other Cultural Considerations, page 154:
      The physician should evaluate for a history of tight ponytails, buns, chignons, braids, twists, weaves, cornrows, dreadlocks, sisterlocks, and hair wefts in addition to the usage of religious hair coverings.
  2. (medicine) A temporary swelling on a neonate's head after a ventouse-assisted delivery.

Derived terms

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Translations

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References

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  1. ^ James A. H. Murray et al., editors (1884–1928), “Chignon”, in A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (Oxford English Dictionary), volume II (C), London: Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 341, column 1.

French

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Chignon tenu par des baguettes.

Etymology

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Spelled chaengnon around the 12th century with the meaning of nape; same Latin root as chaîne, i.e. catēna, perhaps via reconstructed Vulgar Latin *catēniōnem. The evolution of the meaning from “chain” to “nape” is unclear: a chain of bones (see Czech páteř for a similar evolution) or metonymical, where a chain would rest (see col, collier).

The modern sense dates back from the middle of the 18th century and might have been influenced by the sound proximity of tignon, from tignasse.

The expression chignon de pain is a local, dialectal pronunciation of quignon de pain (“loaf of bread”). Note that, although not taken into consideration by the TLFi (see reference below), quignon could also be the etymon of chignon, considering that the same “pastry metaphor” applies to French macaron, English bun.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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chignon m (plural chignons)

  1. roll or twist of hair worn at the nape of the neck; a bun

Derived terms

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Further reading

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