plagiarius

Plagiarius is a Latin noun meaning "kidnapper" or "abductor." It is formed from plagium, meaning kidnapping or seizure, with the agent noun suffix -arius, yielding "one who performs the act of kidnapping." In classical usage, a plagiarius described a person who abducted others, especially slaves, and the term appears in legal and literary contexts of ancient Rome.

In English, the term's legacy lives on in words connected to taking or seizing ideas. Plagiarism, derived from Latin plagium through French plagiaire into English, denotes the act of presenting someone else’s work as one’s own. The person who commits it is a plagiarist; the older spelling plagiary or plagiary is now uncommon and largely historical.

Plagiarius is also used as the name of a satirical prize associated with design and intellectual property. The Plagiarius Award, presented annually at the Nuremberg International Toy Fair by the Plagiarius Foundation, highlights examples of product design that imitate or copy well-known originals, drawing attention to imitation and infringement rather than any positive attribute of the copied work.