contigua

Contigua is a Latin feminine adjective and noun form meaning neighboring or adjacent. It is the feminine singular form of contiguus, whose masculine form is contiguus and neuter contiguum. In Latin grammar, contigua agrees with a feminine noun in gender and case, for example terra contigua (the neighboring land) or regio contigua (the adjacent region).

Etymology and related forms: contigua derives from the Latin root contig-, from con- “together” and tangere “to touch,” indicating something that lies next to or touches another thing. The term gives rise in English to the linguistic family of wordscontiguous and contiguity, which preserve the sense of touching or being in contact.

Usage in Latin: contigua appears in classical and medieval Latin texts to describe geographic proximity, borders, or relationships between objects or places. It commonly appears in phrases such as terra contigua or provincia contigua to designate lands or regions that lie beside each other.

Modern usage: In English, the direct Latin form contigua is not standard outside quotations or Latin glosses. The familiar English terms are contiguous (adj.) and contiguity (n.), used in contexts ranging from geography to mathematics and philosophy. The phrase “the Contiguous United States” uses a related sense of adjacency, but contigua itself is rarely used in contemporary English outside Latin references.

See also: contiguity, contiguous, adjacent.