Paper

The 2nd/3rd Sg. Endings of the Future Passive Imperative in Latin

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Abstract

In this paper I provide a comprehensive analysis of the 51 instances I have found of the future passive imperative in Latin, offering new suggestions about the chronology of the creation of the three different 2nd/3rd singular endings, -tō, -minō, and -tor, and their usage. The data suggest that -minō is the most archaic ending attested for the 2nd/3rd sg. future passive imperative. I argue that the preserved instances of passive use of the ending -tō represent a more recent development rather than deriving directly from the situation reconstructed for Proto-Indo-European. In Latin, this use seems instead to be a transfer of the active ending onto deponents via common verbs. Further, the lack of transparency of the ending -minō has several consequences for this verbal category in Latin, such as the creation of a more clearly marked passive ending -tor. I consider also whether the situation in Latin reflects a paradigmatic gap.

Keywords: imperative, Latin, second person, third person, singular, Ending, future, passive, active, deponent, verb

How to Cite:

Hilmarsdóttir, S., (2026) “The 2nd/3rd Sg. Endings of the Future Passive Imperative in Latin”, Proceedings of the Annual UCLA Indo-European Conference 35(1): 5, 77-97. doi: https://doi.org/10.5070/J5.62152