gentis

Gentis is the genitive singular form of the Latin noun gens, which denotes a people, nation, or clan. In Latin, gens is a feminine noun of the third declension; its genitive singular is gentis, meaning "of the gens" or "of the people." The term is used to express belonging, origin, or affiliation within a broader tribal or familial group and frequently appears in genealogical, legal, and historical texts.

Declension: gens, gentis, genti, gentem, gente; plural gentes, gentium, gentibus, gentes, gentibus. The genitive singular gentis is the form most commonly seen when modifying other nouns (e.g., nomen gentis "the name of the gens", frater gentis "the brother of the gens"). Adjectival phrases may render gentis Romanae "of the Roman gens."

Usage and significance: In classical and late antique Latin, gens referred to a kinship group connected by common ancestry and often endowed with distinctive rights, duties, and religious practices. A gens could encompass several families and sometimes functioned as a political or social unit within a state. The genitive gentis appears in inscriptions and literature to specify origin, lineage, or membership.

See also: gens, ethnonym, lineage, clan.