albus

See also:Albusandalbuș

Latin

flōs albus (a white flower)

Etymology

FromProto-Italic*alβos,fromProto-Indo-European*h₂elbʰós.Cognates includeUmbrian𐌀𐌋𐌚𐌖(alfu),Ancient Greekἀλφός(alphós,“whiteness, white leprosy”),Hittite𒀠𒉺𒀸(alpas,“cloud”),Middle Welshelbid(“world”),Englishelf,andRussianле́бедь(lébedʹ,“swan”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin)IPA^(key):/ˈal.bus/,[ˈäɫ̪bʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical)IPA^(key):/ˈal.bus/,[ˈälbus]

Adjective

albus(femininealba,neuteralbum,comparativealbior,superlativealbissimus);first/second-declensionadjective

1. white(properly withoutluster),dull white
   • 8CE,Ovid,Metamorphoses12.402–403:

     totus pice nigrior atra, candida cauda tamen; color est quoque cruribusalbus.

     All blacker than pitch was he, yet white was his tail; his legs were snowywhite.

   • p.830,Nennius,Historia Brittonum,II: 42

     duo vermes in eo sunt, unusalbuset unus rufus

     "There are," said he, "two serpents, onewhiteand the other red[…]"

2. clear,bright
   • c.77CE– 79CE,Pliny the Elder,Naturalis Historia14.80:

     colores vinis quattuor:albus,fulvus, sanguineus, niger.

     There are four colors of wine:white,brown, sanguine, and black.

3. pale,fair,gray,hoary
   • p.1250,Thomas Aquinas,De ente et essentia

     […]et sic de ipsa aliquid praedicatur per accidens ratione eius, in quo est, sicut dicitur quod homo estalbus,quia Socrates estalbus,quamvis hoc non conveniat homini in eo quod homo.

     And thus something is accidentally asserted, that is, we say that man iswhitebecause Socrates iswhite,although this does not come about for men because [Socrates] is a man.

4. (figuratively)favorable,fortunate,auspicious,propitious

Usage notes

• Latinalbusis used primarily to mean "white" that is dull ormatte.The wordcandidusis used primarily for shining whiteness. However, this distinction is not always followed.

Declension

First/second-declensionadjective.

Number	Singular				Plural
Case / Gender	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	albus	alba	album		albī	albae	alba
Genitive	albī	albae	albī		albōrum	albārum	albōrum
Dative	albō	albae	albō		albīs
Accusative	album	albam	album		albōs	albās	alba
Ablative	albō	albā	albō		albīs
Vocative	albe	alba	album		albī	albae	alba

Synonyms

• (white):albidus,blancus(medieval),candidus,lacteolus
• (clear, bright):limpidus
• (pale, gray):cānus
• (favorable):bonus,favorābilis

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of“dull white”):āter

Derived terms

• alba
• albāmentum
• albārium
• albārius
• albātus
• albēdō
• albeō
• albēscō
• albicapillus
• albicēris
• albicō
• albicolor
• albicomus
• albidus
• albīnus
• albitūdō
• albogalerus
• albogilvus
• albor
• albūgō
• albulus
• album
• albūmen
• alburnum
• alburnus
• albus an ater sit
• subalbus

Descendants

• Balkan Romance:
  • Aromanian:albu,alb
  • Istro-Romanian:åb
  • Megleno-Romanian:alb,albu
  • Romanian:alb
• Dalmatian:
  • jualb,juolb
• Italo-Romance:
  • Italian:albo
• Rhaeto-Romance:
  • Romansch:alv,alb
• Ibero-Romance:
  • Mozarabic:الب(əlb)
  • Old Spanish:obo, oba(in toponyms)
  • Portuguese:alvo
• Insular Romance:
  • Sardinian:abru,alvu,arvu,arbu
• Derived forms:
  • ⇒Vulgar Latin:*alba(“dawn”)(see there for further descendants)
  • ⇒Vulgar Latin:albellus(see there for further descendants)
  • ⇒Medieval Latin:albinus
    • →Spanish:albino
      • →English:albino
      • →French:albinos
  • ⇒ Neo-Latin:albana
    • →French:albane
      • →English:alban
• Borrowings:
  • →Catalan:alb
  • →French:albe
  • →Italian:albo
  • →Old English:albe
    • English:alb
  • →Old Spanish:albo
    • Spanish:albo

See also

Colorsin Latin ·colōrēs(layout·text)

albus,candidus,subalbus,niveus,cēreus,marmoreus,eburneus,cānus,blancus(ML.)	glaucus,rāvus,pullus,cinereus,cinerāceus,plumbeus,grīseus(ML. or NL.)	niger,āter,piceus,furvus
ruber,rūbidus,rūfus,rubicundus,russus,rubrīcus,pūniceus,murrinus,mulleus;cocceus,coccīnus,badius	rutilus,armeniacus,aurantius,aurantiacus;fuscus,suffuscus,colōrius,cervīnus,spādīx,castaneus,aquilus,fulvus,brunneus(ML.)	flāvus,sufflāvus,flāvidus,fulvus,lūteus,gilvus,helvus,croceus,pallidus,blondinus(ML.)
galbus,galbinus,lūridus	viridis	prasinus
cȳaneus	caeruleus,azurīnus(ML.),caesius,blāvus(LL.)	glaucus;līvidus;venetus
violāceus,ianthinus,balaustīnus(NL.)	ostrīnus,amethystīnus	purpureus,ātropurpureus,roseus,rosāceus

References

• “albus”,inCharlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879)A Latin Dictionary,Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “albus”,inCharlton T. Lewis (1891)An Elementary Latin Dictionary,New York: Harper & Brothers
• albusin Charles du Fresne du Cange’sGlossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis(augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• albusinGaffiot, Félix (1934)Dictionnaire illustré latin-français,Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894)Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1],London:Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous)to record in the official tablets (Annales maximi):in album referre(De Or. 2. 12. 52)
    
• albusinRamminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed))Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700‎^[2],pre-publication website, 2005-2016