Martial

See also: martial

English

Etymology

From Latin Martialis (“Roman cognomen”), from martiālis (“belonging or dedicated to the Mars, the Roman god of war, or to war”), from Mārs (“the god Mars; the planet Mars”) + -ālis (suffix forming adjectives of relationship from nouns).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmɑːʃəl/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmɑɹʃəl/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)ʃəl
• Homophones: marshal, martial
• Hyphenation: Mart‧ial

Proper noun

Martial

1. A male given name from Latin, narrowly applied to certain historic persons (but some of its foreign cognates are modern given names).

   Saint Martial was the first bishop of Limoges, circa 250

2. An Anglicized cognomen or given name of the Roman poet Marcus Valerius Martialis, born in Spain in the first century AD and noted for his epigrams.

Related terms

• Marcus and many descendants, e.g., Mark
• Martinus and many descendants, e.g., Martin
• martial

Translations

male given name

• Dutch: Martialis, Martial
• French: Martial (fr)
• Galician: Marcial (gl) m
• Italian: Marziale
• Latin: Martialis
• Occitan: Marçau m
• Portuguese: Marcial
• Spanish: Marcial (es)

Roman poet

• Danish: Martial
• Dutch: Martialis
• German: Martial
• Hungarian: Martialis
• Portuguese: Marcial
• Russian: Марциа́л m (Marciál)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Aragonese: ^{(please verify)} Marcial

Adjective

Martial (not comparable)

1. (astronomy, obsolete) Alternative letter-case form of martial (“of or relating to the planet Mars”)
   • 1869 February 6, “The Planet of War”, in E[neas] S[weetland] Dallas, editor, Once a Week, volume III, number 58 (New Series), London: Bradbury, Evans, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 74, column 1:

     For, having found out by a careful series of observations, the parts of Mars' orbit where the planet entered upon its various seasons, he [William Herschel] noted that, soon after mid-winter of the northern hemisphere, the northern white spot attained its greatest dimensions, while the southern was reduced to a tiny oval of light; whereas half a Martial year later, the southern spot was at its largest, and the northern a mere speck when compared with its winter appearance.

Noun

Martial (plural Martials)

1. (chiefly science fiction, obsolete) Alternative letter-case form of martial (“inhabitant of the planet Mars; Martian”)
   • 1892, The Spectator: A Weekly Review of Politics, Literature, Theology, and Art, volume LXIX, London: F. C. Westley, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 218, column 2:

     The Martials, if there be Martials in any sense in which there are terrestrials on our own planet, may have no eyes at all; their whole civilisation, if they have say, may depend on senses of which we have absolutely no trace, […]

Further reading

• Martial on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• mail art, marital

French

Etymology

From Latin Martiālis. Name of a third century saint.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maʁ.sjal/

Proper noun

Martial m

1. a male given name, in continuous use (though not particularly popular)