proper nounfirst declension
Britannia Maior
Britannia Maior f sg (genitive Britanniae Maiōris)
Ecclesiastical[briˈtan.ni.a ˈmaː.jor]
Meaning
- Medieval LatinfemininesingularGreat Britain (a large island (sometimes also including some of the surrounding smaller islands) off the north-west coast of Western Europe, made up of England, Scotland, and Wales)
Hibernia, poſt Britanniam inſularum maxima, collateralem habet Britanniam Maiorem ab Oriente; ſolum Oceanum ab Occidente; ab Aquilonari verò parte trium dierũ velifico curſu Borealium inſularũ maxima Iſlandia iacet.
Ireland, the largest of the islands after Britain, has Great Britain adjacent on the east; only the Ocean on the west; and from the northern part, at a voyage of three days under sail, lies Iceland, the greatest of the northern islands.1573, Additamentum Theatri orbis terrarum, 6.D.:
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | Britannia Maior | — |
| genitive | Britanniae Maiōris | — |
| dative | Britanniae Maiōrī | — |
| accusative | Britanniam Maiōrem | — |
| ablative | Britanniā Maiōre Britanniā Maiōrī | — |
| vocative | Britannia Maior | — |
Origins
From Britannia (“Britain”) + maior (“greater, larger”), literally “Greater Britain”. The name was used to distinguish Great Britain from Lesser Britain (Britannia Minor), i.e. Brittany (in modern France).
Descendants
- EnglishGreat Britain
- ItalianGran Bretagna
- FrenchGrande-Bretagnefrom Old French Grant Bretaigne
- FrenchGrand-Bretagnefrom Old French Grant Bretaigne
- FrenchGrand' Bretagnefrom Old French Grant Bretaigne
- FrenchGrand'Bretagnefrom Old French Grant Bretaigne
- SpanishGran Bretaña
- Haitian CreoleGrann Bretayfrom Old French Grant Bretaigne
- TagalogGran Britanyafrom Spanish Gran Bretaña