???Flutist or Flautist???

[musical_K]

Is it 'flutist or 'flautist'? I've seen both written down loads - just wondering which was correct.....

[flutepicc06]

Either is correct, depending on location and preference. If you use either term (even "fluter" or "flute player" are correct too), people will know what you're talking about. I personally prefer "flutist" to "flautist" but it doesn't really matter which you use.

[remnantpark]

Both is correct! You can use either one, but I like "flautist" because it's "orginial" (well, not really).
I guess "flautist" came from "la flauta" in spanish...

[flutepicc06]

Both is correct! You can use either one, but I like "flautist" because it's "orginial" (well, not really).
I guess "flautist" came from "la flauta" in spanish...

Actually, I believe "flautist" comes from Italian. I am no etymologist, so I may be incorrect.

[remnantpark]

Italian makes sense too...It's hard to tell bevause Latin, French, Italian, etc somehow are alike

[fluteguy18]

I believe that the term flautist probably has more roots in latin than a specific Romantic Language. En Francais, le mot pour cette chose est "Flute Traversiere". So, because it seems that English has dominantly french and german in fluences [ with spanish and italian thrown in here or there], Flautist probably came from a sort of hybrid of several languages with latin and Italian being the key influences.

[remnantpark]

Interesting...

[cflutist]

Naming Controversy: 'Flautist' Vs. 'Flutist'
The choice of "flautist" (from the Italian flautista, from flauto, and adopted due to 18th century Italian influence) vs "flutist" is the source of minor dispute among players of the instrument. "Flutist" is the earlier term, dating from at least 1603 (the earliest quote cited by the Oxford English Dictionary), while "flautist" is not recorded before 1860, when it was used by Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Marble Faun. While the print version of the OED does not indicate any regional preference for either form, the online Compact OED characterizes "flutist" as an American usage.[1]

Richard Rockstro in his three volume treatise "The Flute"[2] written in England in 1890 uses "flute-player".

The US player and writer Nancy Toff, in her The Flute Book, devotes more than a page to the subject, commenting that she is asked "Are you a flutist or a flautist?" on a weekly basis. She says "Ascribe my insistence either to a modest lack of pretension or to etymological evidence; the result is the same." She describes in some detail the etymology of words for "flute". (She is an editor for Oxford University Press.[1]) She compares OED, Fowler's Dictionary of Modern Usage, Evans' Dictionary of Contemporary American Usage, and Copperud's American Usage and Style: The Consensus. Fowler says "flautist" has displaced "flutist" in usage, though "flautist" is not so popular in the USA. She prefers "flutist" personally and etymologically. [3]

[remnantpark]

Wow, I didn't know that "flutist vs.flautist" had history back then. (No offense to anyone)

[fluteguy18]

Hmm..... very interesting!

[ick27]

We have another thread discussing the same thing:
http://www.fluteland.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=653

[Phineas]

We should but this in the FAQ!

Phineas

[atoriphile]

ick27 - Thanks for the link to the other thread. Very interesting.

There was a brief discussion on what to call piccolo players. I've always heard 'piccoloist', similar to how a solo player is called a 'soloist'. I think that's pretty standard.

[Zevang]

I've seen people from Europe using "flautist". "flutist" is common in america.

Zevang

[Claiken]

my friend ruined "flautist" for me by making a dirty joke... so i used Flutist now, lol.