trepalium

Latin

Alternative forms

tripālium

Etymology

From tripālis (“held up by three stakes or pales”) +‎ -ium, from tri- (“three”) +‎ pālus (“stake”, “pale”) from Proto-Italic *trēs + *pākslos from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂ǵ- (“attach, fasten, fix, hang”). Perhaps a calque of Byzantine Greek τριπάσσαλον (tripássalon), from τρι- (tri-, “three”) +‎ πάσσαλος (pássalos, “peg upon which to hang things”) from the same roots.

Pronunciation

(Classical) IPA^(key): /treːˈpaː.li.um/, [t̪reːˈpäːlʲiʊ̃ˑ]

(Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /treˈpa.li.um/, [t̪reˈpäːlium]

Noun

trēpālium n (genitive trēpāliī); second declension (Late Latin, Vulgar Latin, Medieval Latin, Ecclesiastical Latin)

A torture instrument consisting of three stakes
- 578 CE, Aunacharius Autissiodorensis, Concilium Antissiodorense (Council of Auxerre) Canon XXXIII:
  Non licet presbytero, nec diacono, ad trepalium, ubi rei torquentur, stare.
  It is not permitted for a priest, nor a deacon, to stand close to a trepalium, where the guilty are tortured.

Declension

Second-declension noun (neuter).

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	trēpālium	trēpālia
Genitive	trēpāliī	trēpāliōrum
Dative	trēpāliō	trēpāliīs
Accusative	trēpālium	trēpālia
Ablative	trēpāliō	trēpāliīs
Vocative	trēpālium	trēpālia

Descendants

Vulgar Latin: *tripaliō (see there for further descendants)
Asturian: trabayu
Old French: trepeil
⇒ Old French: travailz ⇒ travauz
- ⇒ Old French: travail
  - → English: travail
  - Middle French: travail
    - French: travail
  - Norman: travas
Old Occitan: trepeil
- Aragonese: treballo
- Catalan: treball
- Extremaduran: trebaju
- Occitan: trabalh, travai
Italian: travaglio
Ladino: טראבﬞאזﬞו‎ (travajo)
Ligurian: travàggio
Old Portuguese: traballo
- Galician: traballo
- Portuguese: trabalho
Sardinian: trabadhu, travallu
Sicilian: travagghiu
Spanish: trabajo