ab initio

English

Alternative forms

• ab init

Etymology

From Latin ab (“from”) + initiō, ablative singular of initium (“beginning”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌæb ɪˈnɪʃ.i.oʊ/, /ˌæb əˈnɪt.i.oʊ/, /ˌɑb əˈnɪt.i.oʊ/

Adverb

ab initio

1. (law) From the time when a law, legal right or decree, contract, ownership interest, partnership (etc.) comes into force. [Early 17^th century.]
   • 2007, Parliament of India, “Section 14”, in Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006‎^[1], page 4:

     Any child marriage solemnised in contravention of an injunction order issued under section 13, whether interim or final, shall be void ab initio.

2. (sciences) Calculated from first principles, i.e. from basic laws without any further additional assumptions.
   • 1983, Monty Python, The meaning of life, at about 1h 15':

     […] this soul does not exist ab initio, as orthodox Christianity teaches; it has to be brought into existence by a process of guided self-observation. However, this is rarely achieved, owing to man's unique ability to be distracted from spiritual matters by everyday trivia.

3. (of an academic course) Taken with no prior qualifications.

Translations

referring to the time from when a legal document comes into force

• Dutch: ab initio, vanaf het begin
• Hindi: आदितः (hi) (āditaḥ)
• Russian: с возникнове́ния (ru) (s vozniknovénija), от нача́ла (ru) (ot načála)
• Spanish: ab initio (es), desde el principio

calculated from first principles, i.e. from basic laws without any further additional assumptions

taken with no prior qualifications

German

Alternative forms

• a. i., ab in., ab init. (abbreviation)

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ab initiō (“from the beginning”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ap iˈniːt͡si̯o/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ab ini‧tio

Adverb

ab initio

1. ab initio

References

• “ab initio” in Duden online

Spanish

Adverb

ab initio

1. ab initio

Further reading

• “ab initio”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10