fundar

Fundar is a verb used in Spanish and Portuguese that means to found, establish, or set up. It is applied to creating organizations, institutions, towns, cities, companies, or other entities. The term can also be used metaphorically to refer to establishing traditions, principles, or practices.

Etymology and related terms: Fundar originates from Latin fundare, itself from fundus meaning base or foundation. Related nouns include fundación (Spanish) and fundação (Portuguese) for a foundation; fundador/fundador for founder; and fundamento for a basis or foundation. These terms form the core semantic field around the act of establishing something on a base.

Usage: Fundar is a transitive verb and follows standard conjugation patterns of its language. In Spanish, common constructions include fundar una empresa, fundar una ciudad, or fundar un país. In Portuguese, the equivalents are fundar uma empresa, fundar uma cidade, or fundar um país. The act of founding often leads to the noun foundation or foundation-like institutions, as in la fundación (Spanish) or a fundação (Portuguese), and to a person who initiates the establishment, the fundador/fundador.

Examples: Spanish: La empresa fue fundada en 1980. La ciudad fue fundada en el siglo XVI. Portuguese: A empresa foi fundada em 1980. A cidade foi fundada no século XVI. These sentences illustrate the typical use of fundar to mark the creation of organizations or settlements and their historical dating.