# progenitor
## English
### Alternative forms

* progenitour (obsolete)

### Etymology

From Middle English progenitour, from Anglo-Norman progenitour, Middle French progeniteur (Modern French progéniteur), and their etymon Latin prōgenitor, from prōgenitus, perfect participle of prōgignere (“to beget”), itself from prō- (“forth”) + gignere (“to beget”). By surface analysis, pro- (“prior, fore-”) +‎ genitor.

### Pronunciation

* (UK) IPA: /pɹəʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tə/, /pɹəˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.tə/
** Audio (Southern England):(file)
* (US) IPA: /pɹoʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tɚ/, /pɹəˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.tɚ/
* Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

### Noun

progenitor (plural progenitors)
* A forefather, any of a person's direct ancestors.
    Synonyms: ancestor, forefather
    Coordinate terms: progenitrix, foremother
* A person from whom one or more people (dynasty, tribe, nation…) are descended.
    Abraham, alias Ibrahim, is the presumed progenitor of both the Jewish and Arab peoples.
* (biology) An ancestral form of a species.
* (figuratively) A predecessor of something, especially if also a precursor or model.
    ARPANET was the progenitor of the Internet.
    Are neural progenitor cells infected by Zika virus?
* (figuratively) Someone who originates something.
* A founder.

#### Derived terms

* legendary progenitor
* progenitor cell

#### Related terms

* progenitive, progeny

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

### References

* ↑ “prōǧenitǒur, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
* ↑ “progenitor, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
* ↑ Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “progenitor (n.)”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

### Further reading

* progenitor on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

### Anagrams

* troopering

## Catalan
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin prōgenitōrem.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central) [pɾu.ʒə.niˈto]
* IPA: (Balearic) [pɾo.ʒə.niˈto]
* IPA: (Valencia) [pɾo.d͡ʒe.niˈtoɾ]
* Rhymes: -o(ɾ)
* Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

### Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitors, feminine progenitora)
* progenitor

#### Related terms

* progènie
* progenitura

### Further reading

* “progenitor” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
* “progenitor”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
* “progenitor” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
* “progenitor” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

## Latin
### Etymology

From prōgignō, prōgenitus +‎ -or. By surface analysis, prō- +‎ genitor.

### Pronunciation

* (Classical Latin) IPA: /proːˈɡe.ni.tor/, [proːˈɡɛnɪt̪ɔr]
* (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA: /proˈd͡ʒe.ni.tor/, [proˈd͡ʒɛːnit̪or]

### Noun

prōgenitor m (genitive prōgenitōris); third declension
* (rare) ancestor, progenitor

#### Declension

Third-declension noun.

#### Coordinate terms

* prōgenitrīx

#### Descendants

* → Catalan: progenitor
* → Galician: proxenitor
* → Italian: progenitore
* → Middle French: progeniteur
** French: progéniteur
** → Middle English: progenitour
*** English: progenitor
* → Portuguese: progenitor
* → Spanish: progenitor

### References

* “progenitor”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
* “progenitor”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
* progenitor in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
* ↑ progenitor in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
* ↑ “progenitor, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

## Portuguese
### Etymology

From Latin prōgenitor.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoh]
* (Brazil) IPA: /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoh]
** (São Paulo) IPA: /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoɾ/
** (Rio de Janeiro) IPA: /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoχ]
** (Southern Brazil) IPA: /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoɻ/
* (Portugal) IPA: /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈtoɾ/
* (Portugal) IPA: /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈtoɾ/
** (Southern Portugal) IPA: /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈto.ɾi/
* Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

### Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitores, feminine progenitora, feminine plural progenitoras)
* progenitor (any of a person’s direct ancestors)
* (figuratively) progenitor (a predecessor of something)

#### Related terms

* progénie
* progenitura

### Further reading

* “progenitor”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

## Spanish
### Etymology

From Latin prōgenitor.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /pɾoxeniˈtoɾ/ [pɾo.xe.niˈt̪oɾ]
* Rhymes: -oɾ
* Syllabification: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

### Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitores, feminine progenitora, feminine plural progenitoras)
* progenitor

#### Related terms

* progenie
* progenitura

### Further reading

* “progenitor”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10