Londinium
English
[edit]
Etymology
[edit]Unadapted borrowing from Latin Londinium. Doublet of London.
Pronunciation
[edit]Proper noun
[edit]Londinium
- (historical) A city in Britannia, Roman Empire: An ancient settlement in the area of modern London.
- (poetic) Synonym of modern London: A city in England, United Kingdom
References
[edit]- ^ “Londinium”, in Collins English Dictionary.
Latin
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]- Lundinium, Londonium, Lundonium, Londonum, Londinum (Late and Medieval Latin)
- Lundonia, Londonia, Lundoniae (Medieval Latin, as sg. or pl.)
Etymology
[edit]Uncertain, but likely from Proto-Celtic *Londinyom (“place that floods”), from Proto-Indo-European *lendʰ- (“heath; wild land”) + *-injo-, a suffix forming specific nouns and found in other Romano-Celtic placenames. Cognate to Proto-Celtic *landā (“low-lying land”), whence Old Irish land, Welsh llan, as well as *londos (“subduing > fierce”, adj.), whence Old Irish lond.[1]
An earlier, more difficult proposal derives it from *Φlowonidonyom, morphologically adapted from a pre-Celtic Indo-European substrate word meaning something like “Boat River, Unfordable River” or “Flooding-River” and made up of Proto-Indo-European *plew- (“to flow”) and a disputed *neyd- (“to flow”).[2]
Forms in -don- could be artificial Latinizations modelled after e.g. Old English Wreocen < Latin Viroconium (modern Wroxeter). Appears as Middle Welsh Llundein, Old English Lunden, which may not continue the Classical Latin form, but may continue Late British Latin *Lundeinju if the medial -i- of the original word was short.[1] Cf. Etymology of London.
Pronunciation
[edit]- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /lonˈdi.ni.um/, [ɫ̪ɔn̪ˈd̪ɪniʊ̃ˑ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /lonˈdi.ni.um/, [lon̪ˈd̪iːnium]
- Note: the length of the medial /i/ is unattested, but is likely to have been short.
Proper noun
[edit]Londinium n sg (genitive Londiniī or Londinī); second declension
- (Classical Latin) Londinium (a city in Britannia, Roman Empire; modern London)
- (Medieval Latin, New Latin) London (the capital city of the United Kingdom; capital city of England)
Declension
[edit]Second-declension noun (neuter), with locative, singular only.
| singular | |
|---|---|
| nominative | Londinium |
| genitive | Londiniī Londinī1 |
| dative | Londiniō |
| accusative | Londinium |
| ablative | Londiniō |
| vocative | Londinium |
| locative | Londiniī |
1Found in older Latin (until the Augustan Age).
Derived terms
[edit]Descendants
[edit]- → Ancient Greek: Λονδίνιον (Londínion)
- → Old English: Lunden
- → English: Londinium
- → German: London
- Sicilian: Lògnina, Lònnira
References
[edit]Further reading
[edit]- “Londinium”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- Londinium in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
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- en:Cities in the Roman Empire
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- la:London
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- la:Cities in the United Kingdom
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- la:Capital cities