LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

caerimōnia

caerimōnia f (genitive caerimōniae)
Classical[kae̯.rɪˈmoː.ni.a]Ecclesiastical[t͡ʃe.riˈmɔː.ni.a]

Meaning

  1. religious ceremony, ritual
  2. sacredness, sanctity
  3. reverence, veneration, awe

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Consuetudo · Mos · Ritus · Cærimonia

Consuetudo denotes the uniform observance of anything as a custom, arising from itself, and having its foundation in the inclination or convenience of an individual or people, ἔθος; whereas mos (modus) is the habitual observance of anything, as a product of reason, and of the self-conscious will, and has its foundation in moral views, or the clear dictates of right, virtue, and decorum, ἦθος; lastly, ritus denotes the hallowed observance of anything, either implanted by nature as an instinct, or introduced by the gods as a ceremony, or which, at any rate, cannot be traced to any human origin. Consuetudines are merely factitious, and have no moral worth; mores are morally sanctioned by silent consent, as jura and leges by formal decree; ritus (from ἀριθμός, ῥυθμός), are natural, and are hallowed by their primæval origin, and are peculiar to the animal. (v. 75.) 2. Ritus is a hallowed observance, as directed and taught by the gods or by nature; whereas cærimonia (κηδεμονία) is that which is employed in the worship of the gods.

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativecaerimōniacaerimōniae
cērimōniae
genitivecaerimōniae
caerimōnī, caerimōniī, cērimōniae		caerimōniārum
caerimōniōrum, cērimōniārum
dativecaerimōniae
caerimōniō, cērimōniae		caerimōniīs
cērimōniīs
accusativecaerimōniam
cērimōniam		caerimōniās
cērimōniās
ablativecaerimōniā
caerimōniō		caerimōniīs
cērimōniīs
vocativecaerimōniacaerimōniae
cērimōniae

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

sacra, res divinae, religiones, caerimoniae
ritual; ceremonial.
violatas caerimonias inexpiabili religione sancire (Tusc. 1. 12. 27)
to invoke an irrevocable curse on the profanation of sacred rites.

caerĭmōnĭa (cērĭ-; scanned cĕrīmōnĭa, Prud. c. Symm. praef. 1, 5), ae, f. (collat. form caerĭmōnĭum, ii, n., Gloss. Lat. pp. 50, 69 Hild.; Inscr. Orell. 3188) [kindr. with Sanscr. root kri, = facere; cf. also creo. cerus, Ceres. strictly sacred work, divine rite; cf. Bopp, Gloss. p. 79, a; Pott, I. p. 219; Mommsen, Unterit. Dial.],
I. the sacred. the divine, that which has reference to the Deity (in class. prose)
I. Lit.
A. Objectively, sacredness, sanctity (in this sense rare, and only in sing.): sanctitas regum, et caerimonia deorum. Caes. ap. Suet. Caes. 6: legationis. Cic. Rosc. Am. 39, 113; Tac. A. 4, 64 fin.: 3, 61: loci. id. ib. 14, 22 fin.—
B. Subjectively, a holy dread, awe, reverence, veneration of the Deity (external; while religio has regard both to internal and external reverence for God; rare except in sing.). Cic. Inv 2. 22, 66; Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 14. § 36; id. Leg. 2, 22. 55; 2, 53, 161: sacra summā religione caerimoniāque conficere. id. Balb. 24. 55: so id. Har Resp. 10, 21; 17, 37: Nep. Them. 8, 4; Liv. 29. 18, 2; 40, 4, 9; Gell. 4. 9. 9; Tac. A. 4, 55' esse in magnā caerimoniā. to be held in great veneration, Plin. 6, 27, 31, § 135; also plur.: habere aliquid in caerimoniis. id. 37, 7, 28, § 100.—
II. Meton. (abstr. pro concr.), a religious usage, a sacred rite, religious ceremony (while ritus designates both religious and profane rites: so esp. freq. in the histt. and mostly in plur.): Ceres et Libera. quarum sacra... longe maximis atque occultissimis caerimoniis continentur. Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 72, § 187: religiones vero caerimoniaeque omnium sacrorum fanorumque violatae. id. ib. 2. 1. 3. § 7: in sacerdotio caerimoniisque diligentissimus. id. Rab. Perd. 10, 27: sepulcrorum, id. Tusc. 1, 12, 27: caelestes. Liv 1, 20, 4 and 7' polluere. id. 6, 41, 9; Tac. H. 1, 2; Suet. Caes. 74: fetiales. Liv. 9, 11, 8: auspiciaque, id. 22, 9, 7; Flor. 1, 2, 2: novae, Tac. A. 1, 54: vetustissimae. id. ib. 1. 62: deorum, id. ib. 3, 60; 16, 28; publicae, id. H. 2, 91; Suet. Caes. 6: an tiquae. id. Aug. 31: peregrinae, veteres ac praeceptae, id. ib. 93: externae, id. Tib. 36. —In sing.: collatis militaribus signis, quo more eorum gravissima caerimonia continetur, Caes. B. G. 7, 2; Suet. Aug. 94 med.

Origins

Uncertain. * The word formally matches Sanskrit कर्मन् (kárman, “action, deed; karma”), as if both were from Proto-Indo-European *kʷermon-, itself an abstract noun formed from Proto-Indo-European *kʷer- (“to do, make”). * According to De Vaan, it's a derivation from the unattested adjective *caerus + -mōnia also found as the second part of the compound sincērus (“whole, sound”); however, if so, the expected outcome of the latter would be *sincīrus. * From an unattested Etruscan *caerimō. * Roman folk etymology held this word as coming from the name of the city of Caere.

Descendants
  • Catalancerimònia
  • Englishceremony
  • Frenchcérémonie
  • Italiancerimonia
  • Portuguesecerimónia
  • Romanianceremonie
  • Spanishceremonia
  • Turkishseremonifrom French cérémonie
  • Galiciancerimonia
  • Piedmontesesirimònia

Quick answers

What does caerimōnia mean in Latin?
caerimōnia, a noun, means “religious ceremony, ritual; sacredness, sanctity; reverence, veneration, awe”.
What is the genitive of caerimōnia?
The genitive singular is caerimōniae. caerimōnia is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce caerimōnia?
In classical Latin, [kae̯.rɪˈmoː.ni.a]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [t͡ʃe.riˈmɔː.ni.a].