LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
proper noun · masculinefirst declension

Sulla

Sulla m (genitive Sullae)

Meaning

  1. masculinea cognomen used by the gens Cornelia
    Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeSullaSullae
genitiveSullaeSullārum
dativeSullaeSullīs
accusativeSullamSullās
ablativeSullāSullīs
vocativeSullaSullae

Sulla (less correctly Sylla), ae, m.,
I. a surname in the gens Cornelia. So, esp.,
I. L. Cornelius Sulla Felix, the celebrated Roman dictator, Cic. Div. 1, 33, 72; Sall. J. 100, 2; Flor. 3, 21, 5; Vell. 2, 17, 1.—Hence, Sullānus, a, um, adj., of or belonging to Sulla: tempus, Cic. Par. 6, 2, 46: ager, id. Agr. 2, 26, 70: assignationes, id. ib. 3, 1, 3: proscriptio, Sen. Ira, 2, 34, 3: saeculum, id. ib. 1, 20, 4: partes, Nep. Att. 2: tempora, Plin. 9, 35, 59, § 123. — Subst.: Sullāni, ōrum, m., partisans of Sulla, Cic. Agr. 3, 2, 7.—
II. L. Cornelius Sulla Faustus, usually called Faustus Sulla, a son of the dictator, Cic. Clu. 34, 94; id. Agr. 1, 4, 12; id. Att. 8, 3, 7 al.—
III. P. Cornelius Sulla, a relation of the dictator, accused of ambitus, and defended by Cicero in an oration still extant. —
IV. Publius and Servius Sulla, conspirators with Catiline, Sall. C. 17, 3; cf. Cic. Sull. 2, 4.—
V. An astrologer of the time of Caligula, Suet. Calig. 57.

Origins

Uncertain. It likely referred originally to a personal physical characteristic, like many Latin cognomina: Quintilian (Institutio Oratoria 1.4.25.3) gives it as an example of a name with this kind of etymology (along with Burrus, Galba, Plautus, Pānsa, Scaurus). If the vowel was long, the form would be consistent with derivation from sūra (“calf of the leg”) + -la (diminutive suffix) (making it equivalent to *sūrula); compare Sūra (agnomen and cognomen). An alternative modern proposal is that it comes from suīlla (carō) 'pork (meat)'. Plutarch interprets Lucius Cornelius Sulla's cognomen as a reference to his facial complexion (although it was already a traditional name in his family).

Descendants
  • Ancient GreekΣύλλᾱς

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

Biography & mythologySullaSulla. 5. L. Cornelius Sulla Felix, the dictator, was born in B. C. 138. Like most other great men, he was the architect of his own fortunes. He posse…

Quick answers

What does Sulla mean in Latin?
Sulla, a proper noun, means “a cognomen used by the gens Cornelia”.
What is the genitive of Sulla?
The genitive singular is Sullae. Sulla is masculine, first declension.