progenitor

English

WOTD – 5 July 2009

Alternative forms

• progenitour (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English progenitour, from Anglo-Norman progenitour, Middle French progeniteur (Modern French progéniteur), and their etymon Latin prōgenitor, from prōgenitus, perfect participle of prōgignere (“to beget”), itself from prō- (“forth”) + gignere (“to beget”). By surface analysis, pro- (“prior, fore-”) +‎ genitor.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /pɹəʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tə/, /pɹəˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.tə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /pɹoʊˈd͡ʒɛn.ɪ.tɚ/, /pɹəˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.tɚ/
• Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

Noun

progenitor (plural progenitors)

1. A forefather, any of a person's direct ancestors.

   Synonyms: ancestor, forefather

   Coordinate terms: progenitrix, foremother

2. A person from whom one or more people (dynasty, tribe, nation…) are descended.

   Abraham, alias Ibrahim, is the presumed progenitor of both the Jewish and Arab peoples.

3. (biology) An ancestral form of a species.
4. (figuratively) A predecessor of something, especially if also a precursor or model.

   ARPANET was the progenitor of the Internet.

   Are neural progenitor cells infected by Zika virus?

5. (figuratively) Someone who originates something.
6. A founder.

Derived terms

• legendary progenitor
• progenitor cell

Related terms

• progenitive, progeny

Translations

any of a person's direct ancestors

• Bulgarian: предшественик (bg) m (predšestvenik)
• Catalan: progenitor (ca) m, progenitora (ca) f
• Cebuano: giliwatan
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 祖先 (zh) (zǔxiān), 先祖 (zh) (xiānzǔ)

• Crimean Tatar: ecdat
• Czech: předek (cs) m, praotec m
• Danish: forfader c
• Dutch: voorouder (nl) m, voorvader (nl) m
• Finnish: esi-isä (fi), kantaisä
• German: Ahn (de) m, Vorfahr (de) m, Vorfahre (de) m
• Greek: πρόγονος (el) m (prógonos), γεννήτορας (el) m (gennítoras)

  Ancient: πρόγονος m (prógonos)

• Hindi: पूर्वज (hi) m (pūrvaj)
• Irish: sinsear m
• Latin: progenitor m
• Maori: uretū
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: stamfar (no) m

  Nynorsk: stamfar m

• Polish: przodek (pl)
• Portuguese: progenitor (pt) m
• Romanian: strămoș (ro) m, străbun (ro) m, strămoașă (ro) f, străbună (ro) f
• Russian: прароди́тель (ru) m (prarodítelʹ), пре́док (ru) m (prédok)
• Scottish Gaelic: gineadair m
• Serbo-Croatian: прародитељ m
• Spanish: progenitor (es) m or f
• Turkish: ata (tr), cet (tr)

an individual from which (a) people(s) descend

• Bulgarian: прародител (bg) m (praroditel)
• Cebuano: giliwatan
• Danish: stamfader c
• Dutch: patriarch (nl) m, stamvader (nl) m
• German: Stammvater (de) m, Urahn (de) m, Vorfahr (de) m, Vorfahre (de) m
• Greek: πρόγονος (el) m (prógonos), πατριάρχης (el) m (patriárchis)

  Ancient: πρόγονος m (prógonos)

• Hindi: पुरखा (hi) m (purkhā)
• Irish: sinsear m
• Maori: uretū, tipuna
• Portuguese: progenitor (pt) m
• Turkish: cet (tr), dede (tr)

an ancestral form of a species

• Bulgarian: предшественик (bg) m (predšestvenik)
• Dutch: stamvorm
• German: Vorfahr (de) m, Vorfahre (de) m
• Greek: πρόγονος (el) m (prógonos)
• Irish: sinsear m
• Turkish: ata (tr), cet (tr)

a predecessor of something

• Bulgarian: предше́ственик (bg) m (predšéstvenik)
• Czech: předchůdce (cs) m
• Dutch: voorloper (nl) m, voorafbeelding m
• Finnish: edeltäjä (fi)
• German: Vorläufer (de) m
• Greek: πρόγονος (el) m (prógonos)
• Hindi: पूर्वज (hi) m (pūrvaj)
• Polish: poprzednik (pl)
• Portuguese: progenitor (pt) m
• Romanian: predecesor (ro) m or n, precursor (ro) m or n
• Russian: предте́ча (ru) m or f (predtéča), предше́ственник (ru) m (predšéstvennik)
• Scottish Gaelic: ro-theachdaire m
• Serbo-Croatian: претеча m
• Turkish: öncü (tr), öncü (tr)

someone who originates something

• Bulgarian: основател (bg) m (osnovatel)
• Czech: zakladatel (cs) m
• Danish: stifter c, grundlægger c
• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} geestelijke vader m , stichter (nl) m, grondlegger (nl) m
• Finnish: isä (fi)
• German: Erzeuger (de) m, Erzeugerin (de) f
• Greek: γεννήτορας (el) m (gennítoras)
• Hindi: जनक (hi) m (janak)
• Polish: prekursor (pl), pomysłodawca (pl)
• Russian: созда́тель (ru) m (sozdátelʹ), основа́тель (ru) m (osnovátelʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: neach-stèidheachaidh m
• Serbo-Croatian: оснивач m, творац m
• Turkish: üretici (tr)

founder — see founder

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} auteur (fr) m, ^{(please verify)} patriarche (fr) m, ^{(please verify)} précurseur (fr) m, ^{(please verify)} ancètre m
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} progenitore (it) m, ^{(please verify)} precursore (it) m

Further reading

• progenitor on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• troopering

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin prōgenitōrem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [pɾu.ʒə.niˈto]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [pɾo.ʒə.niˈto]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [pɾo.d͡ʒe.niˈtoɾ]
• Rhymes: -o(ɾ)
• Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitors, feminine progenitora)

1. progenitor

Related terms

• progènie
• progenitura

Further reading

• “progenitor” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “progenitor”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.
• “progenitor” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “progenitor” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Latin

Etymology

From prōgignō, prōgenitus +‎ -or. By surface analysis, prō- +‎ genitor.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /proːˈɡe.ni.tor/, [proːˈɡɛnɪt̪ɔr]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /proˈd͡ʒe.ni.tor/, [proˈd͡ʒɛːnit̪or]

Noun

prōgenitor m (genitive prōgenitōris); third declension

1. (rare) ancestor, progenitor

Declension

Third-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	prōgenitor	prōgenitōrēs
genitive	prōgenitōris	prōgenitōrum
dative	prōgenitōrī	prōgenitōribus
accusative	prōgenitōrem	prōgenitōrēs
ablative	prōgenitōre	prōgenitōribus
vocative	prōgenitor	prōgenitōrēs

Coordinate terms

• prōgenitrīx

Descendants

• → Catalan: progenitor
• → Galician: proxenitor
• → Italian: progenitore
• → Middle French: progeniteur
  • French: progéniteur
  • → Middle English: progenitour
    • English: progenitor
• → Portuguese: progenitor
• → Spanish: progenitor

References

• “progenitor”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “progenitor”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• progenitor in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

Portuguese

Etymology

From Latin prōgenitor.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoh]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoh]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoɾ/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoʁ/ [pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoχ]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /pɾo.ʒe.niˈtoɻ/

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈtoɾ/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈtoɾ/
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /pɾu.ʒɨ.niˈto.ɾi/

• Hyphenation: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitores, feminine progenitora, feminine plural progenitoras)

1. progenitor (any of a person’s direct ancestors)
2. (figuratively) progenitor (a predecessor of something)

Related terms

• progénie
• progenitura

Further reading

• “progenitor”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin prōgenitor.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɾoxeniˈtoɾ/ [pɾo.xe.niˈt̪oɾ]
• Rhymes: -oɾ
• Syllabification: pro‧ge‧ni‧tor

Noun

progenitor m (plural progenitores, feminine progenitora, feminine plural progenitoras)

1. progenitor

Related terms

• progenie
• progenitura

Further reading

• “progenitor”, 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