adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective (nominative masculine singular in -er)
Āfer1
Āfer (feminine Āfra, neuter Āfrum)
Classical[ˈaː.fɛr]Ecclesiastical[ˈaː.fer]
Meaning
- adjectivefrom Africa (the territory of Carthage)
Declension
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | in -er Āfer | Āfra | Āfrum |
| genitive | Āfrī | Āfrae | Āfrī |
| dative | Āfrō | Āfrae | Āfrō |
| accusative | Āfrum | Āfram | Āfrum |
| ablative | Āfrō | Āfrā | Āfrō |
| vocative | Āfer | Āfra | Āfrum |
| form | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | Āfrī | Āfrae | Āfra |
| genitive | Āfrōrum | Āfrārum | Āfrōrum |
| dative | Āfrīs | Āfrīs | Āfrīs |
| accusative | Āfrōs | Āfrās | Āfra |
| ablative | Āfrīs | Āfrīs | Āfrīs |
| vocative | Āfrī | Āfrae | Āfra |
Āfer, fra, frum, adj. v. Africa,
I. African:
litus, Ov. H. 7, 169: aequora, the sea between Africa and Sicily, id. F. 4, 289: avis, i. e. a Numidian hen, in high estimation on account of its size and rareness, Hor. Epod. 2, 53: Afro Murice tinctae lanae, i. e. of Gœtulia, id. C. 2, 16, 35; cf. id. Ep. 2, 2, 181, and Ov. F. 2, 318.—Hence, subst.: āfer, an African, and ă_fri, ōrum, m., Africans, Cic. Balb. 18: sitientes Afri, Verg. E. 1, 65: discincti, ungirded, i. e. unwarlike, id. A. 8, 724: dirus Afer, i. e. Hannibal, Hor. C. 4, 4, 42.—Poet.: medius liquor Secernit Europen ab Afro, i. e. from Africa, Hor. C. 3, 3, 47.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
Āfer Āfra, Āfrum, adj.,
African. — As subst, m., an African: dirus, i. e. Hannibal, H.: te Afris praeficere: discincti, V.
Origins
From a Punic endonym for the Carthaginians and their land. Related to Punic 𐤏𐤐𐤓 (ʿpr /ʿafar/, “dust”) akin to Biblical Hebrew עָפָר (ʿāp̄ār, “dust”). Flavius Josephus derived the ethnonym from the name of Abraham's grandson, Epher.