Barchetta (Italian pronunciation: [barˈketta] ) is an Italian word commonly translated into English as "little boat". The term originally referred to a small skiff used for recreational purposes. It is also applied to some items of clothing, as well as being used in automobile styling, where it describes a class of open-top, two-seat sports cars.
The root of barchetta is barca, the Italian word for "boat". In Italian "small boat" would be piccola barca.
The use of the diminutive suffix -etta, the feminine form of -etto, confers the sense of something small or tiny with a connotation of endearment or affection towards the object.
The plural form of barchetta is barchette.
In French the equivalent term is barquette. The root word barque , which in French refers to a boat with three or more masts, is combined with the diminutive suffix -ette. In common use, barquette may refer to a shallow container or tray. Its use when describing an automobile is similar to that of the Italian term.
A cappello a barchetta refers to a military side cap similar to a bustina. It may also refer to an out-moded three-cornered hat somewhat similar to a tricorne with a less pronounced brim.
A tasca a barchetta or "barchetta pocket" refers to a breast pocket in a men's suit jacket or blazer cut and trimmed in the curved shape of a boat. [1]
When applied to an automobile, barchetta describes a small car that is open-topped, without provision of a removable or foldable top for weather protection. [2] [3] Instead of a full windshield, the barchetta has a low-rise transparent wind deflector that may be a single full width piece, be divided into two sections, or omitted entirely. With an emphasis on performance, unnecessary trim and equipment is kept to a minimum.
The barchetta has full-width enveloping bodywork, in contrast to an early spider corsa, which may have cycle or wing fenders. [2] Later (non-corsa) spiders added more heavily padded seats, interior carpeting and a full windshield, items not found in the more spartan barchette. [4] Some later cars still called barchette were more well-appointed, following the trend of the later spiders and convertibles.
The first car to be called a barchetta was a Ferrari 166 MM shown at the 1948 Turin Auto Show. [5] [6] The car was designed by Federico Formenti at Carrozzeria Touring. [7] Giovanni Canestrini, editor of the Italian sporting newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport , applied the term to describe the new car's original bodystyle. [6] The name barchetta has been associated with the open 166 MM model ever since. [5]
Ferrari built other models also called barchetta, including versions of the Ferrari 212 Inter [8] and the Ferrari 250 MM Vignale. [9]
Other manufacturers began to use the name as well, such as the Maserati brothers' O.S.C.A. MT4 barchetta of 1948, [10] the 1953 Moretti 750 barchetta, [11] and the 1966 Abarth 1000 SP racing barchetta. [12]
The label was also applied retroactively to cars that had been built before the launch of the Ferrari 166MM, such as the 1943 Stanguellini Ala d'Oro. [13]
More contemporary barchette have included the 1991 track-oriented Maserati Barchetta, [14] the Fiat Barchetta of 1995–2005, Ferrari's 2001 550 Barchetta Pininfarina built to mark Pininfarina's 70th anniversary, [15] the 2003 Lamborghini Murciélago Barchetta Concept, that entered production under Roadster nameplate; [16] the 2001 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato Barchetta recreation, [17] the 2007 Bertone Barchetta Concept [18] the 2018 Pagani Zonda HP Barchetta and the Morgan Midsummer.
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