ignis

Latin

Etymology

From earlier *egni, *igni, dissimilated from *engni, *ingni, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁n̥gʷnis (“fire”). Cognate with Sanskrit अग्नि (agní), Hittite 𒀀𒀝𒉌𒅖 (akniš) (an Indo-Iranian borrowing), Old Church Slavonic огнь (ognĭ) and Old Prussian ugnis.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈiɡ.nis/, [ˈɪŋ.nɪs]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈi.ɲis/, [ˈiɲ.ɲis]

• audio (Classical)

  (file)

• audio (Ecclesiastical)

  (file)

Noun

ignis m (genitive ignis); third declension

1. fire

   • ferro ignique.

     With iron and [with] fire.

   • 29–19 BCE, Virgil, Aeneid, 8.420

     striduntque cavernis / stricturae Chalybum et fornacibus ignis anhelat

     Chalybian ores hiss in the caverns, and from the furnace mouths puff the hot-panting fires

Inflection

Third declension, alternative ablative singular in -ī and accusative plural in -īs.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	ignis	ignēs
Genitive	ignis	ignium
Dative	ignī	ignibus
Accusative	ignem	ignēs ignīs
Ablative	igne ignī	ignibus
Vocative	ignis	ignēs

Derived terms

• ignēscō (“to kindle, burn”)
• igniō (“to ignite”)
• igneus (“fiery”)
• ignifer (“bearing fire”)

Descendants

• English: ignite
• Italian: igne (borrowed)

References

• ignis in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• ignis in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• ignis in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
• ignis in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • to light, make a fire: ignem facere, accendere
    
  • to set fire to houses: ignem tectis inferre, subicere
    
  • to take fire: ignem concipere, comprehendere
    
  • to make up, stir up a fire: ignem excitare (pro Mur. 25. 51)
    
  • to keep up a fire: ignem alere
    
  • to perish in the flames: igni cremari, necari
    
  • to raise an alarm of fire: ignem conclamare
    
  • the wind spread the conflagration: ventus ignem distulit (B. G. 5. 43)
    
  • an eruption of Etna: eruptiones ignium Aetnaeorum
    
  • Vesuvius is discharging flame: Vesuvius evomit (more strongly eructat) ignes
    
  • to threaten with fire and sword: minitari alicui igni ferroque (Phil. 13. 9. 21)
    
  • to proscribe a person, declare him an outlaw: aqua et igni interdicere alicui
    
  • to ravage with fire and sword: omnia ferro ignique, ferro atque igni or ferro flammaque vastare
    
  • to set fire to the siege-works: ignem inferre operibus (B. C. 2. 14)
    
• De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, page 297