haruspex
haruspex uital.-lat.
From Proto-Italic *haruspeks, from earlier *xaruspeks (to differentiate it from a later form *haruspeks if the shift */x/ > */h/ in the Italic languages already happened during late Proto-Italic), equivalent to haru- (“intestines”) + *spex. The first component is related to hīra; the second is from the root of speciō (“to observe, watch”).[1] Compare Faliscan 𐌇𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌔𐌐(𐌄𐌗) (harisp(ex)). According to Nocentini[2] the first part stems from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰer- (“intestine”) (thus *ǵʰr̥H-u- > *xaru-), whence also Latin hariolus, hernia (“hernia”).
Cognate to Ancient Greek χορδή (khordḗ), Proto-Germanic *garnō (“intestines”) (whence German Garn) and to Lithuanian žarnà (“intestine”). The component -spex can also be found in the word auspex.
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /haˈrus.peks/, [häˈrʊs̠pɛks̠]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /aˈrus.peks/, [äˈruspeks]
Noun
haruspex m (genitive haruspicis); third declension
Declension
Third-declension noun.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | haruspex | haruspicēs |
| Genitive | haruspicis | haruspicum |
| Dative | haruspicī | haruspicibus |
| Accusative | haruspicem | haruspicēs |
| Ablative | haruspice | haruspicibus |
| Vocative | haruspex | haruspicēs |