nominativus

Nominativus is the Latin term for the nominative case, a grammatical category used to mark the subject of a finite verb and, in many languages, a predicate noun or adjective. The word nominativus is formed from nomen, “name,” with the suffix -ivus, and is used in Latin grammars as the name of this case.

In Latin, the nominative primarily identifies the subject of a sentence. It is also used for predicate nominatives and for adjectives that describe the subject when they appear in a predicative position. Noun forms in the nominative vary by declension and number, and adjectives agree with the noun in gender, number, and case. Examples: puella cantat (the girl sings), where puella is nominative singular feminine; Caesar venit (Caesar comes), with Caesar in the nominative; laeta puella (the happy girl), where laeta agrees in nominative feminine singular with puella.

Common nominative endings illustrate its pattern: 1st declension nominative singular -a (puella), plural -ae (puellae); 2nd declension masculine nominative singular -us (servus), plural -i (servi); neuter nominative singular -um (bellum), plural -a (bella). Adjectives in Latin decline to match the noun’s gender, number, and nominative case, e.g., puella laeta, puellae laetae.

Beyond Latin, many languages feature a nominative case for the subject, though the specific forms differ. In English, the subject form is often the base noun or pronoun rather than a distinct case ending. In linguistic terminology, nominativus remains the Latin name for this core subject case, while modern usage frequently employs the term nominative in reference to various languages. See also: Nominative case, Declension, Predicate nominative.