32
votes
Accepted
A Latin adjective for New York?
The Catholic Church seems to use (say, Archiepiscopus) Neo-Eboracensis very
consistently. See, for example: here for 'FRANCISCUS titulo Ss. Ioannis et Pauli Presbyter Cardinalis SPELLMAN, ...
- 420
17
votes
A Latin adjective for New York?
Just a few days ago I was looking up the scientific name of the Northern Waterthrush: the Parkesia noveboracensis.
The name occurs in several other names. However, I haven't found an example of it ...
- 42.6k
17
votes
Accepted
Is there an English word derived from τάσσω, with a similar meaning of arranging/organising?
The word you are looking for would be taxonomy, from τάσσω, fut. τάξω, to arrange in a certain order, e.g. of troops. Τακτικός is that which is required for the arrangement: the tactics.
- 1,378
15
votes
Accepted
Did grammarians consider the adverbial -e a case ending?
In a recent paper (included in The Latin of the Grammarians), I have made the point that Latin grammarians, unlike their Greek predecessors, did not expressly stress the uninflectional nature of ...
- 276
13
votes
Accepted
What does the suffix -mentum add to a word's meaning?
According to Miller (2006: 76, 78), the endings -men and -mentum form a deverbal (with one exception) noun with the semantics of means, instrument or result of action of the verb. Relevant quotations ...
- 2,019
13
votes
Accepted
What construction is "διδαχή?"
διδαχή is indeed built on διδάσκω, though without the inchoative infix -σκ-: the root is διδαχ-, as can be seen in the aorist ἐδίδαξα, and -σκ- is one of those infixes that only show up in the present....
- 10.8k
12
votes
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Verbing in Latin
There are at least some cases in which this can be done, with different shades of meaning.
graecisso (-izo), āre, v. n., = Γραικίζω, to imitate the Greeks, to adopt a Grecian manner or tone: atque ...
- 16.6k
12
votes
Accepted
Can there be double diminutives in Latin?
Yes, double diminutives are possible in Latin. I found a few other examples from a search on Perseus of Lewis and Short (I looked for words ending in "llula", "llulus" and "llulum"):
arcellula < ...
- 29.8k
12
votes
Accepted
Variations on the diminutive: -olus and -ulus
A word search confirms that -olus is used instead of -ulus after a vowel.
A Perseus search for words ending in -olus reveals (among a few false positives, like malevolus) that every diminutive form ...
- 42.6k
12
votes
Accepted
Niveus and nivosus
In general, the -osus ending indicates plenty. Lacrimosa isn't just "teary-eyed," but weepy. Same with nivosa. Niveus is often used with mountains to describe the snow-topped peaks, and from the ...
cmw♦
- 57.7k
11
votes
Accepted
How is the supine related to the derived fourth declension noun?
Remember than infinitives are “typically frozen case-forms” of verbal nouns (Fortson 2010: 107; see also Weiss 2009: 445). So, in several IE branches (Balto-Slavic, Indo-Iranian and Italic), there is ...
- 11.7k
10
votes
How is the supine related to the derived fourth declension noun?
The supine is, in fact, the remnant of a fourth-declension nominal form, a verbal noun which stood for the action itself. The Plautine comedies still record an intermediate stage of this syntactical ...
- 1,226
10
votes
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Nominalized adjective in Latin?
Latin doesn't need any changes at all. Since there are no definite articles, there's no need for anything but using the adjective substantively. The only requirement is following normal grammar rules ...
cmw♦
- 57.7k
9
votes
Accepted
Constructing Latin diminutives
I think abdomunculum would be the most regular diminutive of abdomen. But it seems a bit difficult to me to give a clear answer because the rules about "proper" diminutive suffixes are often based on ...
- 29.8k
9
votes
Accepted
A verb for Googling in Latin
I can think of many ways of going about this, but for such an unapologetically modern idea I think the best approach may be to observe how other related modern languages have solved this problem and ...
- 42.6k
9
votes
Accepted
How productive was the participle in -menus in Latin?
Weiss cites, besides alumnus, femina (from a root meaning 'give suck'), calumnia (derived from *kalwo-mno-, from the root of calvor 'deceive'), and possibly also columna and the divine name Vortumnus (...
- 31.5k
9
votes
Is there a diminutive form for agent nouns?
The example that I'm familiar with is meretricula, found in, e.g., Plautus, Rudens 62-63:
ipse hinc ilico
conscendit navem, avehit meretriculas.
- 20.5k
9
votes
Accepted
Is there a diminutive form for agent nouns?
There are agent nouns for all genders.
For example, saltare gives rise to saltator, saltatrix, and saltatrum.
For more details, see this question.
The stem is revealed by the genitive form.
For my ...
- 116k
9
votes
Why is the root vowels of 'salsus' and 'saliō' from 'sāl' shortened?
The stem of sāl is săl-.
This is documented in many dictionaries, including Lewis and Short.
Most derivatives are taken from the stem of the noun, not the nominative.
The only outlier with respect ...
- 116k
9
votes
Accepted
Why is the root vowels of 'salsus' and 'saliō' from 'sāl' shortened?
As has been pointed out, it's the long vowel in the nom. and voc. sg. of sāl that requires explanation, not the short vowel everywhere else, and it doesn't look like we have a good consensus.
Sihler, ...
- 10.8k
9
votes
Is there an English word derived from τάσσω, with a similar meaning of arranging/organising?
Another common English word is syntax: literally the "ordering together" of words, from συντάσσω > σύνταξις.
- 42.6k
9
votes
For what Vulpes --> Vulpecula, but Sorex never will be Soreculus
Latin has various diminutive suffixes. Although both words are spelled with "cul", the "c" in vulpēcula is part of the diminutive suffix, while the "c" in sō̆riculus is ...
- 29.8k
8
votes
Accepted
How does one show that a person or thing is the performer of an action?
Assuming we're in a codified state (from the tags), there are two primary ways. The first is use the present participle as a substantive. E.g. Cic. Div. 68.141 (from G-L § 437):
Nihil est magnum ...
cmw♦
- 57.7k
8
votes
Are there feminine and neuter versions of "professor"?
As chirlu says, the usual way to form a feminine equivalent to a noun in -(s)sor is with -strix. Aside from the examples mentioned in that answer, here are further words of this form found using ...
- 29.8k
8
votes
Accepted
Is mensa somehow derived from mens?
According to Mensa's About Us page, the name is taken from Latin mensa, which means "table":
What does "Mensa" mean?
The word "Mensa" means "table" in Latin. ...
- 42.6k
8
votes
Is mensa somehow derived from mens?
According to De Vaan's Etymological Dictionary, these two words are not related. Here are his notes on mēns:
PIt. *mnti-.
PIE *mn-ti- [f.] 'thought, mind'. IE cognates: Skt. mati- [f.] '...
- 11.5k
8
votes
Accepted
Why is the E in 'collega' long?
It's true that it would be extremely unusual for a word to be derived from a perfect stem in Latin, so I feel you're right to be suspicious of Varro and L&S. You're also right to connect it to ...
- 10.8k
7
votes
Is the noun Bonum, -i simply a substantive of the adjective Bonus, -a -um?
I don't have anything to say about this particular case, but the phenomenon itself is common.
Any adjective can be substantivized.
For example rubrum (from ruber, "red") can mean "the color red" or "a ...
- 116k
7
votes
Accepted
Latinitas for other languages
It's not something I've seen often, but it indeed exists. The Theodosian code has Graecitas:
Habeat igitur audītōrium speciāliter nostrum in hīs prīmum, quōs Rōmānae ēloquentiae doctrīna commendat, ...
cmw♦
- 57.7k
7
votes
Deriving adjectives from city names
This kind of thing is codified in Bennett's New Latin Grammar at http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/bennett.html#sect150
The entries that you seek are:
Names of persons take the suffixes: -ānus, -iānus, ...
- 18.2k
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