nihil sub sole novum
Latin
Alternative forms
- nīl sub sōle novum
- nihil novī sub sōle
Etymology
Vulgate translation at Ecclesiastes 1:10 (1:9 in most other versions), Semantic loan from Biblical Hebrew אֵין כָּל חָדָשׁ תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ (“there is nothing new under the sun”): nihil (“nothing”) + sub (“under, beneath”) + sōle (ablative singular form of sōl: “[the] sun”) + novum (neuter nominative singular form of novus: “new”) = “nothing new under the sun”.
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈni.(ɦ)ɪɫ ˈsʊb ˈsoː.ɫɛ ˈnɔ.wũː]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈniː.kil ˈsub ˈsɔː.le ˈnɔː.vum]
Phrase
- “there is nothing new under the sun”; there is nothing truly novel in existence.