sencis

Latvian

Etymology

From sens (“ancient”), made into a 2nd-declension noun. The c suggests a dialectal origin, from those dialects where ns > nc. Alternatively, it may have come from an earlier *sentis, via genitive *senša > senča. There may have been influence from the c in vecis (“old man”).

Noun

sencis m (2nd declension, feminine form: sence)

1. (usually in the plural) ancestor (ancient relatives, e.g., the originators of an ethnic group, a clan, a family)

   tāli senči ― distant ancestors

   dzimtas senči ― (family, clan) ancestors

   senču dievi ― ancestral gods

   senču kults ― ancestor worship

2. (paleontology) ancestor (species of plants or animals from an earlier time period, from which modern species have evolved)

   zirga sencis ― the ancestor of the horse

   putnu senči ― the ancestors of the birds

3. (colloquial) parents (syn. vecāki)

   dzīvot uz senču rēķina ― to live at (one's) parents' expense

Declension

Declension of sencis (2nd declension)

	singular (vienskaitlis)	plural (daudzskaitlis)
nominative (nominatīvs)	sencis	senči
accusative (akuzatīvs)	senci	senčus
genitive (ģenitīvs)	senča	senču
dative (datīvs)	sencim	senčiem
instrumental (instrumentālis)	senci	senčiem
locative (lokatīvs)	sencī	senčos
vocative (vokatīvs)	senci	senči

Related terms

• senatne
• sens
• senums