cognomen means A personal epithet or clan name added to the given name and family name of Ancient Romans.
cognomen is pronounced /kɒɡˈnoʊ.mən/.
Why “cognomen” is a great word
A formal, often hereditary, personal epithet or clan name added to the given and family names of Ancient Romans, or, by extension, any distinguishing surname. From Latin cognōmen, from con- ("with") + nōmen ("name"). Unlike the praenomen—a personal first name like Gaius—or the casual, fleeting nickname, a cognomen is a formal and enduring mark of lineage or character. It is the martial "Africanus" bestowed upon Scipio, the descriptive "Cicero" (chickpea) appended to Marcus Tullius, and the imperial "Caesar" that became a title; a single word carrying the gravity of deeds or the whimsy of a trait, it reminds us that identity is often a matter of public inheritance, not private choice.
Etymology
From Latin cognōmen, from con- (“with”) + nōmen (“name; family name”).
noun
- A personal epithet or clan name added to the given name and family name of Ancient Romans.“Julius Caesar's actual name was Gaius Iulius Caesar. Gaius was his praenomen or forename, Iulius his nomen or surname, and Caesar his cognomen, denoting which part of the Iulius family he belonged to.”
- Synonym of nickname, any epithet used similar to the Roman cognomina.“In this by-place of nature, there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane; who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow[…]. The cognomen of Crane was not inapplicable to his person.”
- Synonym of surname, a family name.“What's in a name? Well, to the Dragons, it would seem rather a lot, as they've tonight committed their cash to personalised products and to the man with the most famous cognomen in confectionery. I'll leave you to look that one up.”
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