What is the Latin word for nativity?

The usual Latin words for “nativity” are orior, thema, gignō; also nāscor, Ammiānus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“nativity” in Latin

oriorto rise, get up; to appear, arise, become visible; to be born, come to exist, originate thematheme; topic; horoscope (the alignment of celestial bodies at a person's birth)gignōto bring forth as a fruit of oneself: to bear, to beget, to engender, to give birth to; to produce, to cause, to yield; nāscorto be born, begotten; to arise, proceed; to grow, spring forth Ammiānusa masculine praenomen, famously held by

The English word nativity itself goes back to Latin nātus, through nativitas.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

nativity

Birth, ortus: the place of one’s nativity, locus quo (urbs in qua) aliquis genitus est; urbs patria [Vid: BIRTH].

Position of the heavens at the moment of one’s birth, thema, -atis, neuter (θέμα, τό), or pure Latin, positus siderum et spatia (Suet., Oct., 94, extr.; Ruhnken, Tac., Ann., 6, 21, 3): sidus natalicium (the constellation under which anyone is born; Cic., De Divin., 2, 43, 91): genitura: nascentia (the hour of birth, Suet., Oct., 94, extr.; Cal., 57; Ammianus, 29, 1. nascentia, *Vitr. 9, 6, 2 [9, 7, 6]): to cast a nativity, animadvertere et notare sidera natalicia; fata per genituras interpretari (as the business of astrologers, according to Ammianus, loc. cit.): from the context, also, positus siderum et spatia dimetiri: to cast a nativity for anyone, praedicere et notare vitam alicujus ex natali die (after Cic., De Divin., 2, 42, init.): to ask anybody to cast one’s nativity, aliquem consulere de genitura, or, from the context, consulere aliquem only (Vid: Suet., Cal., 57; Oct., 94, extr.): one who casts nativities, genethliacus (γενεθλιαλόγος, Gell., 14, 1); or, pure Latin, natalium peritus (Sen., N.Q., 2, 32, 7): fatorum per genituras interpres (Ammianus, 29, 1): Chaldaeus or mathematicus: a casting of nativities, praedictio et notatio vitae cujusque ex natali die (as an act): natalicia praedicta, -orum, neuter (as a thing; both Cic., De Divin., 2, 42, 88, sq.): genethlialogia (γενεθλιαλογία, as a science, Vitr., 9, 6, 2, or 9, 7, 6).

The festival of the Nativity, Christi natalitia.

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for nativity?: The usual Latin words for “nativity” are orior, thema, gignō; also nāscor, Ammiānus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.