LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

fānum

fānum n (genitive fānī)
Classical[ˈfaː.nũː]Ecclesiastical[ˈfaː.num]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. shrine, temple, sanctuary, place dedicated to a deity
    ‘dā veniam culpae, nec, dum dēgrandinet, obsit‘‘Give mercy to my fault; neither let it be held against me [that] while hail was pouring down I sheltered my flock in a rustic shrine.’’ (Begging the mercy of Pales, Ovid humorously defies convention by including a realistic example from rural life.)8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 4.755–756
  2. New Latinas a declinable word to introduce a placename named after a Saint, e.g. Fanum Sancti Iohannis for the various places named Saint John('s), San Juan, etc.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

locus sacer cum templō vel ārā.
fānum -ī n — in Mille Verba, Deī et Sacra

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Templum · Fanum · Delubrum · Ædes · Sacellum

1. Templum, fanum, and delubrum, denote properly the temple, together with the consecrated environs, like ἱερόν; whereas ædes, the building only, like ναός; lastly, sacellum, a consecrated place without the building, with merely an altar. 2. In a narrower sense, templum denotes a great temple of one of the principal gods; whereas fanum and delubrum, a smaller temple of an inferior god, or of a hero, etc.

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativefānumfāna
genitivefānīfānōrum
dativefānōfānīs
accusativefānumfāna
ablativefānōfānīs
vocativefānumfāna

fānum, i, n. fari; cf. Varr. L. L. 6, § 54 Müll.; Paul. ex Fest. p. 88, 1, and 93, 17 Müll.; Cic. Div. 1, 41, 90,
I. a place dedicated to some deity by forms of consecration, a sanctuary, temple (syn.: templum, aedes, delubrum, cella, sacellum, sacrarium): in ea pugna Jovis Statoris aedem votam, ut Romulus ante voverat: sed fa num tantum, id est locus templo effatus, sacratus fuerat, Liv. 10, 37 fin.; Sen. Ben. 7, 7: eamque unam ob causam Xerxes inflammari Atheniensium fana jussisse dicitur, quod deos inclusos parietibus contineri nefas esse duceret, Cic. Rep. 3, 9: pro patriis fanis atque delubris propugnandum, id. Rab. Perd. 10, 30: de aris ac focis, de fanis ac templis, id. Cat. 4, 11, 24: fana templaque expilavit, Suet. Caes. 54: propter fani religionem, Cic. Inv. 2, 1, 1: fanum antiquissimum et sanctissimum, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 20, § 54: Dianae Ephesi, Caes. B. C. 3, 33, 1: Junonis, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 20, § 52: Herculis, Caes. B. C. 2, 18, 1: Hammonis, Lucr. 6, 848: Eumenidum, Cic. N. D. 3, 18, 46; Vulg. Judic. 9, 4 al.
Fanum, i, n.,
I. a city in Umbria, on the Adriatic Sea, with a celebrated temple of Fortuna, now Fano, Caes. B. C. 1, 11 fin.; called also Fanum Fortunae, Plin. 3, 14, 19, § 113; Tac. H. 3, 50; Inscr. Orell. 83 and 84; and Colonia Fanestris, Vitr. 2, 9, 16; 5, 1, 6; cf. Inscr. Orell. 1535; 3143; 3969.

Origins

From Proto-Italic *faznom, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁s-nó-m, from *dʰéh₁s (“god; sacred place”). See fēriae, fēstus. Compare also Etruscan 𐌚𐌀𐌍𐌖 (fanu), 𐌘𐌀𐌍𐌖 (φanu), 𐌇𐌀𐌍𐌖 (hanu, “templet, sacrarium, funerary chapel”).

Gallo-Romance
  • FrenchFâ
  • OccitanFan
Italo-Romance
  • ItalianFano
Ibero-Romance
  • PortugueseFão
Borrowings
  • Italianfano

In English words that came into English from fānum

  • profaneprofānus
  • fanaticfānāticus
  • profanityprofānitās
  • fanefānum
  • profanationprofanatio

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesFanumFanum is any locality consecrated by the pontiffs, and is derived by the ancients from fari, because the pontifices in sacrando fati sunt finem (Varr.…

Quick answers

What does fānum mean in Latin?
fānum, a noun, means “shrine, temple, sanctuary, place dedicated to a deity; as a declinable word to introduce a placename named after a Saint, e.g. Fanum Sancti Iohannis for the various places named Saint John('s), San Juan, etc.”.
What is the genitive of fānum?
The genitive singular is fānī. fānum is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce fānum?
In classical Latin, [ˈfaː.nũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈfaː.num].
Which English words come from fānum?
English words that go back to Latin fānum include fane, profane, fanatic, profanity and profanation.