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Ironically that's exactly what "computer" means. The root "comput-" comes from latin "computo" while "calcolatore" comes from the latin "calculo" which is a ro

Ironically that's exactly what "computer" means. The root "comput-" comes from latin "computo" while "calcolatore" comes from the latin "calculo" which is a rough latin synonym of "computo". The form "comput-" transformed in Italian into "cont-" like in "conto" (English count), "contante" (cash) etc. So perhaps "contatore" (counter) instead of "computer" would make more etymological sense.

fathyb 4y ago
We had this debate in France in 1955. We use the word "ordinateur" for "computer", which comes from the latin "ordinator" which means something that order things, it shares the same root as the word "order". It was picked over the word "calculateur" which is the French equivalent of "calculatore" after IBM France shared a letter wondering if "calculateur" was too restrictive and didn't properly express the machine capabilities. To which Jacques Perret answered "why not ordinateur?" https://journals.openedition.org/bibnum/534 https://journals.openedition.org/bibnum/534
- Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago
  It's kinda funny picturing either of those words as we play Dark Souls (videogame) on these devices. Yes of course that's "all math", still!
Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago
I'm well aware and I find it somewhat amusing. The problem is the interpretation people give to the word. If I say computer, people think of something with keyboard + mouse and a screen, or maybe a laptop (funny enough, they will not think of their phone). If I say "calcolatore", we envision one of those devices to do math operations, used in school (are those still a thing?)
- kome 4y ago
  that's a calcolatrice, calcolatore is a computer :)
  - Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago
    I'm aware, but still in the small circle of people I asked to, they all envisioned that over a computer, lol
mnw21cam 4y ago
Only a short time ago, the word "computer" meant a person (who calculates things as a job).
sharikous 4y ago
I am always amused by those kinds of etymologies where a word "gets back" to the language it came from or its more direct heir (Italian for Latin) after living in a different language. In Hebrew we have "tachless" that comes from yiddish "tachless", that comes from Hebrew "tachlit" but now tachless and tachlit have different meanings and different grammar roles
acadapter 4y ago
This was done in Slovenia (računalnik)

fathyb 4y ago

We had this debate in France in 1955. We use the word "ordinateur" for "computer", which comes from the latin "ordinator" which means something that order things, it shares the same root as the word "order". It was picked over the word "calculateur" which is the French equivalent of "calculatore" after IBM France shared a letter wondering if "calculateur" was too restrictive and didn't properly express the machine capabilities. To which Jacques Perret answered "why not ordinateur?" https://journals.openedition.org/bibnum/534 https://journals.openedition.org/bibnum/534

Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago
It's kinda funny picturing either of those words as we play Dark Souls (videogame) on these devices. Yes of course that's "all math", still!

Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago

I'm well aware and I find it somewhat amusing. The problem is the interpretation people give to the word. If I say computer, people think of something with keyboard + mouse and a screen, or maybe a laptop (funny enough, they will not think of their phone). If I say "calcolatore", we envision one of those devices to do math operations, used in school (are those still a thing?)

kome 4y ago
that's a calcolatrice, calcolatore is a computer :)
- Fire-Dragon-DoL 4y ago
  I'm aware, but still in the small circle of people I asked to, they all envisioned that over a computer, lol

mnw21cam 4y ago

Only a short time ago, the word "computer" meant a person (who calculates things as a job).

sharikous 4y ago

I am always amused by those kinds of etymologies where a word "gets back" to the language it came from or its more direct heir (Italian for Latin) after living in a different language. In Hebrew we have "tachless" that comes from yiddish "tachless", that comes from Hebrew "tachlit" but now tachless and tachlit have different meanings and different grammar roles

acadapter 4y ago

This was done in Slovenia (računalnik)