English → Latin
“society” in Latin
societāssociety, fellowship, partnership, association, community, union; affinity (a union for a common purpose); a company or ssodālitāsclose association, fellowship, brotherhood; an association, club, society; a groupfactiōa political faction, a group of people acting together; a company of charioteers; an act of making or doing; a preparaticollēgiumcolleagueship, (connection of associates, colleagues, etc.); guild, corporation, company, society, college (concrete defcoitusa coming or meeting; a joining, combination; sexual intercourse, copulationamīcusfriendly, well-disposed, amicable; loyal, devoted to; supporting, propitious, helpfulcirculuscircle (geometric figure); orbit (circular path); ring; hoopcongressusmeeting, assembly, conference; congress (all meanings); carnal union, copulation, sexacroāsispublic lecturesodāliciusfellowship, companionship; secret
The English word society itself goes back to Latin socius, through societas.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
society
Union, societas. To live in society, congregatos esse (especially of animals; opposed to solivagos esse; Vid: Cic., Tusc., 5, 13, 88); societatem caritatis coiisse inter se (from mutual inclination): man is born for society homines natura sunt congregabiles; natura nos sociabiles fecit; natura hominem conciliat homini et ad orationis et ad vitae societatem; natura impellit hominem ut hominum coetus et celebrationes et esse et a se obiri velit.
Companionship. To give one’s society to anybody, esse cum aliquo (to be with him); aliquem comitari; alicui comitem se addere or adjungere (to accompany anybody as an attendant) in the society of anybody, cum aliquo: to shun the society of anybody, alicujus aditum sermonemque defugere: to seek the society of anybody, alicujus consuetudinem appetere: bad society spoils good manners, malignus comes quamvis candido et simplici rubiginem suam affricat (Sen., Ep., 7, 6).
Union of several persons for a common end, societas (especially of litterary societies, trading companies, etc.): sodalitas (of colleagues; e.g., of certain priests at Rome; then, general term, of any society in which any secret exists; e.g., of Free-masons with us): factio (a party, especially for a bad purpose; Vid: Trajanus, ap. Plin., Ep., 10, 36 [43], 1): collegium (a corporation; e.g., of merchants, artisans, priests, etc.). To enter into society with anybody, societatem cum aliquo facere, inire, coire (general term); rationem communicare cum aliquo (to make common cause with anybody); societatem contrahere cum aliquo (to enter into a partnership): to receive anybody into a society, aliquem in societatem assumere or ascribere (general term) aliquem in collegium cooptare (into a corporation): to dissolve a society, societatem dirimere: human society, societas humana, hominum, or generis humani: civil society, societas civilis.
A body of persons united for one object, coetus, conventus hominum or amicorum (general term, an assembly of friends): circulus (a social circle): congressus (an assembly which meets together for some purpose): acroasis (an assembly of learned persons in which anything is read): sodalicium (an assembly of colleagues, especially of certain priests and others, in order to celebrate the private worship of a deity with feasting): a society of friends, congressio familiarium: a large society, frequentia, celebritas; celeberrimus virorum mulierumque conventus: to be fond of attending societies and meetings, circulos et sessiunculas consectari.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for society?
- The usual Latin words for “society” are societās, sodālitās, factiō; also collēgium, coitus, amīcus. 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.