100–1 BC

Romanian words from Latin words first recorded in the 1st century BC

79 Romanian words inherited from a Latin word whose earliest known written record dates from the 1st century BC, earliest Latin record first.

căca
100 BC–80 BC

from Latin caco

It is inherited from Latin cacō (“to defecate”). De Vaan calls the Latin verb a nursery word or an onomatopoeia, and compares Ancient Greek κακκάω (kakkáō). Wiktionary traces it to an imitative…
rugăciune
100 BC

from Latin rogatio

It is inherited from Latin rogātiōnem (“request”), the accusative of a noun formed on rogō (“to ask”). Ciorănescu takes it as probably coming straight from Latin, following Pușcariu and the REW…
urs
99 BC–74 BC

from Latin ursus

It is inherited from Latin ursus (“bear”). The Latin word comes from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ŕ̥tḱos (“bear”), via Proto-Italic. De Vaan notes that the Latin cluster ⟨rs⟩ continues the PIE one, but…
flaur
96 BC–55 BC

from Latin flabrum

It is inherited from Latin flābrum (“gust or blast of wind”), as Bogrea proposed in the first volume of Dacoromania; Ciorănescu and the REW accept the etymology. The Latin noun is formed on flō (“to…
luced
96 BC–55 BC

from Latin lucidus

It is inherited from Latin lūcidus (“bright, shining”), as Bogrea proposed. The Latin adjective is formed on lūceō (“to shine”) with -idus. The REW sets it beside Spanish lucio and Portuguese luzio…
prepinge
96 BC–55 BC

from Latin perpendo

It is probably inherited from Latin perpendō (“to weigh carefully”), as Ciorănescu holds after Densusianu and Bogrea. Wiktionary also takes it from the Latin verb. The Latin verb is formed with per-…
socoti
96 BC–55 BC

from Latin succutio

Its origin is uncertain. The Academy dictionaries and NODEX derive it inherited from Latin succutiō (“to shake up, toss up”). Tiktin reports this derivation from Coseriu. An older view, held by…
strat
96 BC–55 BC

from Latin stratum

It is inherited from Latin strātum (“bedding, coverlet; bed”), the neuter of strātus, the perfect passive participle of sternō (“to spread”). Its Romance cognates include Old Italian strato, Occitan…
dumesnic
90 BC–80 BC

from Latin domesticus

It is inherited from Latin domesticus (“of the house, tame”), which the other Romance languages also continue. The Latin adjective comes from domus (“house”). It survives in Aromanian dumeastec, and…
străin
90 BC–80 BC

from Latin extraneus

Most dictionaries take it as inherited from Latin extrāneus (“external, foreign”), although the regular sound changes would have given ⟨*strâi⟩. DEX 2009 calls it of unknown origin. Ciorănescu holds…
mârced
84 BC–25 BC

from Latin marcidus

It is inherited from Latin marcidus (“withered, rotten”), from marceō (“to wither”) and the suffix -idus. The vowel ⟨â⟩ is unexpected. Ciorănescu puts it down to expressive treatment and a false…
splină
84 BC–25 BC

from Latin splen

Ciorănescu takes it as inherited from Latin splēnem (“spleen”), the accusative of a word Latin took from Ancient Greek σπλήν (splḗn). Pușcariu and the REW give the same etymology, with Romance…
Crăciun
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin creatio

The origin of the word has been debated for more than a century. The view most dictionaries give is inherited from Latin creātiō (“creation, begetting, birth”), from the accusative ⟨creātiōnem⟩…
ac
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin acus

It is inherited from Latin acus (“needle”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian ac, Megleno-Romanian ac and Istro-Romanian åc. Its cognates are Dalmatian yuak, Italian ago, Sardinian agu and…
adumbri
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin adumbro

It is inherited from Latin adumbrō (“to shade, overshadow”), with a change of conjugation. The DA assumes an older first-conjugation verb ⟨*adumbra⟩, which moved to the fourth conjugation under the…
cute
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin cos

It is inherited from Latin cōs (“whetstone”), from its accusative cōtem. The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian cuti and Megleno-Romanian cuti. Its Romance cognates include Italian cote…
cuviință
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin convenientia

It is probably inherited from Latin convenientia (“agreement, harmony, fitness”), with its sense shaped by the verb cuveni “to be fitting”. DELR names this view, held by Pușcariu, Tiktin, CADE, the…
cuvânt
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin conventum

It is inherited from Latin conventum (“agreement”), beside conventus (“assembly, gathering”), from conveniō (“to come together”). The meaning moved from “gathering” through “agreement” and…
cântec
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin canticum

It is inherited from Latin canticum (“song”). It survives south of the Danube: Aromanian cãntic and Megleno-Romanian cǫntic. The REW records the inherited word only in Romanian and Aromanian, where…
descinge
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin discingo

DELR, MDA2, DEX and the DLR take it as inherited from Latin discingō (“to ungird”), from dis- and cingō (“to gird”). DELR compares Italian discingere, Old French déceindre, Occitan descenher…
despune
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin dispono

It is inherited from Latin dispōnō (“to set in order, to arrange; to decide”), from dis- and pōnō (“to put”). The REW lists Old French despondre and Occitan desponre beside it. It is a doublet of…
fute
81 BC–50 BC

from Latin futuo

It is inherited from Latin futuō (“to have sex with (a woman)”). The verb survives in all four branches: Aromanian fut, Megleno-Romanian fut and the Istro-Romanian form. Its Romance cognates include…
gingie
81 BC–50 BC

from Latin gingiva

It is inherited from Latin gingīva (“gum”), a word continued across the Romance languages. It survives in Aromanian dzindzie and in Istro-Romanian žinžire, which comes from the variant gingină. Its…
ierna
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin hiberno

It is inherited from Latin hībernō (“to spend the winter”), a verb formed on hībernus (“of winter”). DEX also allows a Romanian formation on iarnă. The word survives south of the Danube as Aromanian…
jumătate
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin medietas

Its origin is disputed. DEX and MDA2 call it of unknown origin. Ciorănescu and Tiktin take it as inherited, inherited from Late Latin medietās (“half, middle”), through a form with the consonants…
jur
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin gyrus

It is usually taken as inherited from Latin gȳrus (“circle, ring”), which Latin borrowed from Ancient Greek γῦρος (gûros, “circle”). Pușcariu, Candrea–Densusianu and the REW give the same etymon…
limpede
81 BC–50 BC

from Latin limpidus

It is inherited from Latin limpidus (“clear, transparent”). The singular ending ⟨-e⟩ is a change of declension: Candrea and Densusianu and the DLR explain it from the plural limpezi, on the model of…
luminos
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin luminosus

For DEX, Scriban, Șăineanu and Graur it is inherited from Latin lūminōsus (“full of light”). DLR and MDA2 form it from Romanian lumină + -os. Tiktin allows both, and adds that the word at least…
merge
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin mergo

It is inherited from Latin mergō (“to dip, plunge, sink”), with a change of meaning found only in Eastern Romance. The Latin verb goes back to Proto-Indo-European *mesg- (“to plunge, dip”). The verb…
măsea
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin maxilla

It is inherited from Latin maxilla (“jaw”). The Latin word is a diminutive of māla (“jaw, cheekbone”). The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian mãseauã and Megleno-Romanian măseauă. Its…
turna
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin torno

1. The word for “to pour” is inherited from Latin tornō (“to turn on a lathe, to round off”). The Latin verb is formed on tornus (“lathe”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian tornu…
ud
81 BC–50 BC

from Latin udus

It is inherited from Latin ūdus (“wet, moist”). The Latin adjective is a contraction of ūvidus (“wet”). It survives in Megleno- and Istro-Romanian as ud and ud, and Ciorănescu gives the same form…
viperă
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin vipera

It is inherited from Latin vīpera (“viper”) in DEX, MDA2 and Pușcariu's dictionary. Tiktin doubts that it is inherited, and Ciorănescu notes that it appears only in the 17th century and is missing…
vis
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin visum

It is inherited from Latin vīsum (“something seen, vision”), a noun made from the past participle of videō (“to see”), which in Latin already meant a vision, usually one seen in a dream. The word…
vitreg
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin vitricus

It is inherited from Latin vītricus (“stepfather”). Ciorănescu stresses that the Latin word had a long /iː/, not a short one, and he rejects the view of Domaschke and Tiktin that the Romanian word…
închide
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin includo

It is inherited from Latin inclūdō (“to shut in, enclose”), formed with in- on claudō (“to shut”). In Romanian it took over the senses of the simple verb, “to close, shut”. Candrea and Densusianu…
închinăciune
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin inclinatio

It is inherited from Latin inclīnātiō (“a bending, leaning”), from the accusative, according to DEX, Candrea–Densusianu, Scriban and Wiktionary. The Latin noun is formed on inclīnō (“to bend”). DER…
îngusta
81 BC–50 BC

from Latin angusto

It is inherited from Latin angustō (“to make narrow”), as DEX, MDA2, Tiktin, the DA and Wiktionary give it. The REW lists the Romanian verb and Spanish angostar under it, and Candrea–Densusianu add…
înțelept
81 BC–43 BC

from Latin intellectus

It is inherited from Latin intellēctus (“understood”), the past participle of intellegō (“to understand”). The DA notes that Latin did not use the participle as an adjective, and that here it took…
arici
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin ericius

It is inherited from Latin ēricius (“hedgehog”). It survives south of the Danube: Aromanian ariciu and Megleno-Romanian ariț. Its Romance cognates include Italian riccio, Sardinian rizzu and Spanish…
cupă
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin cuppa

It is inherited from Late Latin cuppa (“cup”), a late form of Latin cūpa (“tub, cask”) known only from glosses, which took the sense “cup, goblet” across the Romance languages. Its Romance relatives…
curea
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin corrigia

It is inherited from Latin corrigia (“shoelace, thong”). Tiktin explains the change through *correja and *correa, compare cucuvea. DELR compares plai from plagius for the loss of the consonant, and…
căpețel
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin capitellum

DEX, MDA2, the DA and Wiktionary take it as inherited from Late Latin capitellum (“little head”), a diminutive of caput (“head”). The REW lists the Romanian word under that etymon with Italian…
fierbe
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin ferveo

It is inherited from Latin fervĕre (“to boil”), the third-conjugation form of the Latin verb. De Vaan notes that ⟨fervere⟩ is the usual form from Plautus to Virgil and ⟨fervēre⟩ the later one. The…
fumega
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin fumigo

It is inherited from Latin fūmigō (“to smoke, fumigate”). Pușcariu (EWRS no. 670), Candrea and Densusianu (no. 678), the REW and the DA all give this etymon. The Latin verb is formed on fūmus…
mărita
80 BC–27 BC

from Latin marito

It is inherited from Latin marītō (“to give in marriage, marry”), formed on marītus (“husband”), which survived in Old Romanian as the noun mărit “husband”. It survives in all four branches…
aiepta
70 BC–19 BC

from Latin eiecto

1. The word for “to throw” is inherited from Latin ēiectō (“to throw out”), the view of the DA, Pușcariu, the REW, Scriban and DELR. Ciorănescu derives it through a Latin *aiectō formed from it…
detuna
70 BC–19 BC

from Latin detono

It is inherited from Latin dētonō (“to thunder down”), formed from dē- and tonō (“to thunder”). The REW takes it as a neologism, but Ciorănescu points out that this holds only for the sense “to…
pescos
70 BC–19 BC

from Latin piscosus

It is inherited from Latin piscōsus (“teeming with fish”), formed in Latin on piscis (“fish”) with the suffix -ōsus. The DLR and MDA2 derive it instead from pește within Romanian. Tiktin explains…
tei
70 BC–19 BC

from Latin tilia

It is inherited from Latin tilia (“linden tree”), which became masculine on the model of the other tree names, as Ciorănescu, Tiktin and Wiktionary explain. Pușcariu, Tiktin, Scriban and DEX start…
îngemăna
70 BC–19 BC

from Latin ingemino

It is inherited from Latin ingeminō (“to redouble, to repeat”), as DEX, MDA2, Tiktin, the DA and Wiktionary give it. The Latin verb is formed with in- on geminō (“to double, to repeat”). Ciorănescu…
creastă
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin crista

It is inherited from Latin crista (“crest, comb”). Ciorănescu cites Pușcariu, Candrea–Densusianu and the REW for this etymology. De Vaan derives the Latin word from the stem *kris- (“crest, hair”)…
deschide
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin discludo

It is inherited from Latin disclūdō (“to separate, shut off”), formed with dis- on claudō (“to shut”). The Latin consonant group /skl/ regularly gave /ʃkʲ/, so the inherited form is ⟨deșchide⟩…
iederă
60 BC–43 BC

from Latin hedera

It is inherited from Latin hedera (“ivy”). The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian eadiri and Megleno-Romanian iadră. Its Romance cognates include Italian edera, Occitan edra, French…
junc
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin iuvencus

It is inherited from Latin iuvencus (“young bull”). The Latin word is a derivative of the stem of iuvenis (“young”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yuh₁n̥ḱós (“young animal”); De Vaan explains its…
lăsa
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin laxo

It is inherited from Latin laxō (“to loosen, slacken”). The Latin verb, formed from laxus (“loose”), meant to widen and to slacken. In Vulgar Latin it replaced Classical relinquō (“to leave”). The…
nor
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin nubilum

It is inherited from Latin nūbilum (“cloudy sky”), the noun use of the neuter of nūbilus (“cloudy”), from nūbēs (“cloud”). The Latin noun is traced to Proto-Indo-European *(s)newdʰ- (“to cover”)…
pleca
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin plico

It is inherited from Latin plicō (“to fold”). The word survives in Aromanian and Megleno-Romanian as Aromanian plec and Megleno-Romanian plec, both meaning “to bend” and “to leave”. Its Romance…
plânge
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin plango

It is inherited from Latin plangō (“to strike; to beat one's breast, lament”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian plângu, Megleno-Romanian plǫng and Istro-Romanian plấnže. Its Romance…
roade
60 BC–55 BC

from Latin rodo

It is inherited from Latin rōdō (“to gnaw”). DÉRom reconstructs it for Proto-Romance with the sense “to wear away with the teeth bit by bit”. The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian arod…

All Romanian words inherited from Latin, by century →