Onymous

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈɒn.ɪ.məs/

Definitions

1. Relating to entities or works that bear an identifiable name
2. Characterizing items that can be recognized by specific authorship or labeling
3. Pertaining to things or individuals identified by a definite name

Etymology: "Onymous" is a back-formation: it was created by stripping the negative prefix off "anonymous" and treating what remained as a word in its own right. "Anonymous" came into English from Late Latin "anonymus", which in turn was borrowed from Ancient Greek "anṓnumos", meaning "nameless", built from the negative prefix "an-" and "ónuma", "name". The Greek root goes back to an ancient Indo-European word for name, but the key step in English was the reverse-engineering of "anonymous" into a usable base. Once "nonymous" was carved out of "anonymous" with the "a-" removed, speakers had a positive counterpart meaning simply "having a name" or "named". The adjective "onymous" therefore describes something that carries a recognisable name or label, such as a signed work or a credited publication. It sits as the opposite of "anonymous" and shows how English can build a new word by working backwards from an existing one.