# avunculus
## Latin

Picture dictionary :
Network Diagram for Roman Extended Families
atavia
atavus
abavia
abavus
proavia
proavus
avia
/ ava māterna
avus māternus
avia
/ ava paterna
avus paternus
cōnsobrīna
/ mātruēlis
cōnsobrīnus
/ mātruēlis
patruēlis
patruēlis
mātertera
avunculus
amita
patruus
/ barbās
māter
pater
sobrīna
/neptis
/neptia
sobrīnus
/ nepōs
frātruēlis
/neptis
/neptia
nepōs
/frātruus
/frātruēlis
sorōrius
/marītus sorōris
soror
frāter
frātria
/ uxor frātris
socrus
socer
/patraster
socrus
socer
/patraster
soror uxōris
frāter uxōris
glōs
lēvir
uxor
/marīta
/coniunx
/nūpta
marītus
/coniunx
gener
/ fīliaster
fīlia
/ nāta
fīlius
/ nātus
nurus
/ fīliastra
prōgener
neptis
/neptia
nepōs
prōnurus
proneptis
pronepōs
abneptis
abnepōs :

### Etymology

By surface analysis, avus +‎ -unculus. Actually from an n-stem noun suffixed with -culus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewh₂-on-, a dialectal diminutive of *h₂éwh₂ō (“grandfather, adult male relative other than one’s father”) (whence also Proto-Celtic *awontīr (“uncle”) and possibly Proto-Germanic *awô (“grandfather”), from *h₂éwh₂os (“older male relative”)), whence also avus (“grandfather”).

### Pronunciation

* (Classical Latin) IPA: /aˈu̯un.ku.lus/, [äˈu̯ʊŋkʊɫ̪ʊs̠]
* (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA: /aˈvun.ku.lus/, [äˈvuŋkulus]

### Noun

avunculus m (genitive avunculī); second declension
* maternal uncle, mother's brother
* mother's sister's husband
* great-uncle

#### Declension

Second-declension noun.

#### Descendants

* Balkan Romance:
** Romanian: unchi, unchiu
* North Italian:
** Old Venetan: avoncoli (plural, hapax)
** ⇒ Romansch: aug, ô, oc (Sutsilvan)
* Gallo-Romance:
** Old Franco-Provençal: uncle, onclo, hunclo
*** Franco-Provençal: onclle, oncllo
** Oïl:
*** Bourbonnais-Berrichon: ouncle, onclïe, onquille
*** Norman: aonclle (Guernsey), oncl'ye (Jersey), onque
*** Old French: oncle (see there for further descendants)
* Occitano-Romance:
** Old Catalan: avoncle, avonclo, oncle
*** Catalan: oncle, onclo
** Old Occitan: avoncle, auncle, aoncle, oncle
*** Occitan: oncle
* Ancient borrowings:
** → Albanian: ungël, ungj

#### See also

* amita (“paternal aunt”)
* matertera (“maternal aunt”)
* patruus (“paternal uncle”)

### References

* ALF: Atlas Linguistique de la France [Linguistic Atlas of France] – map 941: “oncle” – on lig-tdcge.imag.fr
* “avoncle” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
* Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “avunculus”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, volumes 25: Refonte Apaideutos–Azymus, page 1252
* ↑ Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 48
* ↑ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “avus”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 66

### Further reading

* “avunculus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
* “avunculus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
* avunculus 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)
* avunculus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.