abyssus

abyssus

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin abyssus.

Noun

abyssus

1. (obsolete) Alternative form of abyss[1]

References

1. Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief; William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002), “abyssus”, in The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles, 5th edition, Oxford; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 11.

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Latin

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄβῠσσος (ábussos, “bottomless pit”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /aˈbys.sus/, [äˈbʏs̠ːʊs̠]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /aˈbis.sus/, [äˈbisːus]

Noun

abyssus f (genitive abyssī); second declension

1. (Late Latin) an abyss
   • 405 CE, Jerome, Vulgate Genesis 1:2:

     Terra autem erat inānis et vacua, et tenebrae erant super faciemabyssī et spīritus Deī ferēbātur super aquās.

     And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters.

   • Abyssus abyssum invocat. :

     The abyss calls the abyss.

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	abyssus	abyssī
Genitive	abyssī	abyssōrum
Dative	abyssō	abyssīs
Accusative	abyssum	abyssōs
Ablative	abyssō	abyssīs
Vocative	abysse	abyssī

Derived terms

• *abīsmus

Descendants

• Inherited forms:
  • >? Old Portuguese: avisso
  • Sicilian: avissu (Calabria)
• Ancient borrowings:
  • → Old Irish: abis
    • Irish: aibhéis
• Later borrowings:
  • → Catalan: abís
  • → French: abysse
  • → German: Abyssus
  • → Italian: abisso
  • → Middle English: abissus
    • English: abyss
  • → Old French: abis
  • →? Romagnol: abès

References

• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002), “abyssus”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume 24: Refonte A–Aorte, page 63

Further reading

• “abyssus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• abyssus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)