interjection
avē̆
avē̆
Classical[ˈha.weː]Ecclesiastical[ˈaː.ve]
Meaning
- hail, hello, farewell, greetings! (a formal expression of greeting)
Avē̆ atque valē!
Hail and farewell! (esp. before a long departure and as a last good-bye to the dead).Avē̆ imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant!
Hail, commander, the ones going to their deaths salute you!
Origins
Borrowed with an unspelled /h/ from Punic 𐤅𐤇 (ḥawe, “live!”, 2sg. imp.), cognate to Hebrew חוה (“Chava, the biblical Eve”), and as avō from Punic [script needed] (ḥawū, 2pl. imp.), from Semitic root ḥ-w-y (live). The form might have been contaminated by Etymology 2, especially as the latter one's long vowel also ended up short via iambic shortening; this would explain the reluctance to spell the aspirate, as well as its interpretation as a verb form. Attested since Plautus.