pontifex
English edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Latin pontifex. Doublet of pontiff.
Pronunciation edit
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈpɒn.təˌfɛks/, /ˈpɒn.tɪˌfɛks/
- Hyphenation: pon‧ti‧fex
Noun edit
pontifex (plural pontifices)
- (historical) A pontiff, or high priest, in Ancient Rome.
- 1995, Julius Evola, “Regality”, in Guido Stucco, transl., Revolt against the Modern World[1], Rochester, Vermont: Inner Traditions International, translation of Rivolta contro il mondo moderno, →ISBN, page 7:
- Every traditional civilization is characterized by the presence of beings who […] embody within the temporal order the living and efficacious presence of a power that comes from above. One of these types of beings is the pontifex, according to the inner meaning of the word and according to the original value of the function that he exercised.
Latin edit
Etymology edit
Often interpreted as a compound originally meaning “bridge-maker”, from Proto-Italic *pontifaks, equivalent to pōns (“bridge”) + -fex (suffix representing a maker or producer), either metaphorically “one who negotiates between gods and men” or literally if at some point the social class which supplied the priests was more or less identical with engineers that were responsible for building bridges. Compare Sanskrit पथिकृत् (pathikṛ́t, “path-maker”), attested as an epithet of rishis in the Rig Veda.
Pronunciation edit
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈpon.ti.feks/, [ˈpɔn̪t̪ɪfɛks̠]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈpon.ti.feks/, [ˈpɔn̪t̪ifeks]
Noun edit
pontifex m (genitive pontificis); third declension
- an ancient Roman high priest, state minister, pontiff
- Synonym: antistes
- a pontiff or bishop of the early Christian church, now specifically the Pope
Declension edit
Third-declension noun.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | pontifex | pontificēs |
Genitive | pontificis | pontificum |
Dative | pontificī | pontificibus |
Accusative | pontificem | pontificēs |
Ablative | pontifice | pontificibus |
Vocative | pontifex | pontificēs |
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
References edit
- “pontifex”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “pontifex”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- pontifex in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- pontifex in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- “pontifex”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- pontifex in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700[2], pre-publication website, 2005-2016
- “pontifex”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
- De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 480
Slovak edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
pontifex m anim (genitive singular pontifika, nominative plural pontifikovia, genitive plural pontifikov, declension pattern of chlap)
- a high priest in ancient Rome
- a pontiff or bishop of the early Christian church, now specifically the Pope
Declension edit
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | pontifex | pontifikovia |
genitive | pontifika | pontifikov |
dative | pontifikovi | pontifikom |
accusative | pontifika | pontifikov |
locative | pontifikovi | pontifikoch |
instrumental | pontifikom | pontifikmi |
Further reading edit
- “pontifex”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024