Penates

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /pəˈnɑːtiːz/

Definitions

1. Household gods in ancient Roman culture that symbolized the protection and sanctity of family life and domestic space
2. Deities revered for their role in safeguarding the home and ensuring familial harmony amid domestic affairs
3. Divine spirits worshipped in ancient Rome believed to guard the home and family welfare

Etymology: The Penates were the household gods of ancient Rome, guardians of the storeroom and the family hearth. Their name comes from Latin "penates," which derives from "penus," a word for the inner part of a house, the place where food and provisions were kept. So the gods were named after the pantry before they were named after anything grander. English adopted the term to describe these deities as a distinct category, and it did so in place of a native phrase. Before it arrived, English speakers would have talked about the household gods in Old English as "cofgod," literally "chamber god," a word that matched the Latin idea of a god tied to the private rooms of a home. The borrowed Latin form outlasted it, and "penates" is now mostly found in discussions of Roman religion, often in the phrase "lares and penates," the domestic gods as a pair.