Structured Word Inquiry of 'Chandler' and 'Chandelier'

I just spent an exceptionally long time investigating the words chandler and chandelier to uncover the morphology, but I think I have the morphemes figured out. I encountered the word chandler recently while studying the International System of Units. A candela is a base unit of luminous intensity or the amount of visible light emitted in a particular direction. The word candela is complex.

The bound base <Cand> comes from Latin candēre meaning “shine, glow, burn, white.” Removing the infinitive ending -ēre reveals the <Cand> base, which is also the base of the morphologically related candid and candor/candour. The -ela suffix is a noun suffix directly from the Latin -ēla, which also occurs in sequela.

The bound base <Cand> is also related to the free base <Candle>, which comes from Middle English candel from Old English candel from Latin candēla from candēre. The spelling changed upon passing from Latin through Old and Middle English into Modern English. The word candle is a doublet of candela and chandelle. (More on chandelle to follow.)

While looking at the word candela in Wiktionary, I noticed chandler under the related words. Looking at the etymology, I could see that chandler comes from Middle English chaundeler from Old French chandelier from Latin candēla from candēre. Clearly, chandler is related to candela and candle. I also saw the word chandelier in that word history. English borrowed chandelier from French chandelier, which inherited the word from Latin candelabrum with a suffix change but ultimately from candela from candēre.

I also noticed the word candelabrum, which English also borrowed from Latin. The -brum is a singular neuter noun suffix denoting an instrument, vessel, or place. (The plural form is -bra.)

(As a side note, the -bra is also a singular feminine noun suffix denoting an instrument, vessel, or place with the plural -brae as in vertebra and vertebrae.)

The words chandler and chandelier both passed through Old French (the French car wash, as Dr. Gina Cooke quips). As often happens, the spelling and pronunciation changed. I could see that the Latin <c> became <ch> in the Old French. The same palatalization occurred in words like incantation versus chant from Latin cantāre and cappella versus chapel from Latin cappa. I could therefore see that the initial <chand> chandler and chandelier was related to the <Cand> bound base from Latin candēla from candēre. But I needed to work out the rest of the words.

At first, I thought that chandler and chandelier were perhaps free bases. Again, chandler comes from Middle English chaundeler from Old French chandelier from Latin candēla from candēre with chandelier coming etymologically sooner from the Old French chandelier via Modern French chandelier.

I then looked at the meanings. A chandler is someone who makes or sells candles or who otherwise works with candles. A chandelier is an instrument that holds candles. Semantically, I could see a potential -(e)r suffix in chandler and a potential -ier suffix on chandelier. Both -(e)r and -ier are agent suffixes. The -(e)r is the English form while the -ier is the French form.

?<Chand + l + (e)r → chandler>
?<Chand + el + ier → chandelier>

If the base were <Chand> and the <er> and <ier> were suffixes, then I still had to figure out the <l> and <el> in the middle of the words. Noting that the Middle English chaundeler developed into the Modern English chandler, I hypothesized that the <e> surfaces in chandelier but not in chandler and could thus be represented as <(e)l>.

?<Chand + (e)l + (e)r → chandler>
?<Chand + (e)l + ier → chandelier>

English does have three different -el suffixes. The diminutive -el comes from Middle English -el from Old English -el and Old French -el from Latin -ellus as in panel and roundel. The instrumental and frequentive suffix -el is a less frequent variant of -le and comes from Middle English -el from Old English -ol, -ul, -el as in dotel and swivel. The adjective -el denoting “of, like, related to, pertaining to” comes from Latin –ēlis as in fidelity. However, the etymologies of chandler and chandelier do not align with any of the possible -el suffixes.

Thus, I then considered that the suffix were -(e)le with a replaceable <e>. I had previously identified an -ele suffix in the word clientele, which comes from French clientèle from Latin clientēla from cliēns +‎ –ēla. I had found the answer! The -ele in clientele is a noun suffix that comes from French -èle from Latin –ēla. The –ēla in Latin clientēla is the same –ēla as in candela. I therefore had the etymological evidence for the -(e)le suffix.

I additionally found more evidence of the <Chand> bound base in the word chandelle. A chandelle is an aerobatic maneuver performed by airplanes named after the resemblance to the shape of a candle flame rising upward. As previously mentioned, the word chandelle is a doublet of candle and candela. English borrowed the word from French chandelle from Old French chandele, chandeile, chandoile from Latin candēla with a suffix change. The -elle suffix is a diminutive suffix from French –elle from Old French -ele from Latin -ella.

My investigation of chandler and chandelier took quite a while with many twists and turns. However, I persisted in searching through the etymologies and related words until finally shedding light on the morphology. The Anglicized chandler consists of the bound base <Chand>, the suffix -(e)le, and the suffix -(e)r with the parenthetical <e> of the -(e)le not surfacing. The Gallicized chandelier consists of the bound base <Chand>, the suffix -(e)le, and the suffix -ier with the parenthetical <e> surfacing.