ave

Forms

avē̆ ^[1] It is written have (or habe) more often than ave, in inscriptions too.^[2] Plautus has a plural avo.^[3][2] Treated as a verb, it has (h)avētō, (h)avēte and the infinitive (h)avēre; later writers add avēbō, avērem and haveās.^[3][2][4]

Etymology

It is probably borrowed from Punic 𐤅𐤇 (ḥawe, “live!”), a Punic imperative singular; the plural ⟨avo⟩ in Plautus answers to the Punic plural ⟨ḥawū⟩, from the Semitic root ⟨ḥ-w-y⟩ “live”.^[1][3][2][4] The OLD and the TLL give the Punic origin as possible.^[3][2]

The Romans took it for the imperative of a verb aveō “to be well” and made other forms on it.^[3][4] Quintilian mocks a pedant who greeted people without the ⟨h⟩ and with a long second syllable because the word came from that verb.^[2] Wiktionary suggests that the Latin verb form influenced the borrowed word, which would explain the hesitation over spelling the ⟨h⟩.^[1] Döderlein derived it from Ancient Greek εὖ (eû, “well”).^[5] Etymonline still explains it as the imperative of the Latin verb.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its plural ⟨avo⟩ is read three times in Plautus' Poenulus.^[3][2][4]

Semantic evolution

It was a formal greeting, said on meeting someone and at the head of a letter, and also in leave-taking.^[3][2][5] Augustus opens a letter with avē, mī Gāī.^[2] Catullus ends a poem addressed to his dead brother with atque in perpetuum, frāter, avē atque valē, “and for ever, brother, hail and farewell”, and the greeting to the dead is frequent on tombs.^[2][4] Martial mocks the client who brings his morning have, using the word as a noun, and Seneca calls it the common word given even to strangers.^[2][4] Suetonius reports the cry of the men about to fight a sea battle before Claudius, havē imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant, “hail, emperor, those about to die salute you”.^[2][4] Ravens were taught to say avē Caesar, and the word appears on rings, lamps and floors.^[2]

In the Vulgate Judas greets Jesus with it, the soldiers mock him as king of the Jews with it, and the angel greets Mary with avē grātiā plēna.^[2] From the last came the prayer that English named Ave Maria in the early 13th century, when English also took ave.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus has the plural ⟨avo⟩ in the Poenulus.^[3][2][7]
• 81/79–52/50 BC – Catullus bids his dead brother avē atque valē.^[2][4][7]
• 40–102/103 AD – Martial uses it as a noun for the morning greeting.^[2][4][7]
• c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius records havē imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant.^[2][7]
• 390–406 AD – The Vulgate has the angel's avē grātiā plēna.^[2][7]
• early 13th century – English takes ave with the Ave Maria.^[6]

Meanings

Interjection

1. Hail!, greetings!: a formal greeting on meeting someone or at the start of a letter.^[3][2][1][8]
2. Farewell!, especially to the dead.^[2][1]
3. (as a noun) A greeting.^[2][4]
4. (infinitive avēre) To be greeted: avēre iubeō, I send my greetings.^[3]

Related words

• aveō
• salveō
• valeō
• English ave
• English Ave Maria

Usage notes

Döderlein distinguishes it from salvē, which was said only on meeting, as well as valē, said only on parting;^[5] avē served for both.^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b c d Döderlein, Ludwig (1874), Döderlein’s Hand-book of Latin Synonymes, tr. H. H. Arnold, Andover: W. F. Draper
6. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson