# pronunciation: Cassiciacum



## promulgate

On which syllable does the stress fall in Cassiciacum?
At Cassiciacum - 01 | St Augustine of Hippo | Order of St Augustine


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## Agró

Just in case Pugnator's link is erased: Cassi*cia*cum.


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## promulgate

The Official Wheelock's Latin Series Website

In Latin, ia is not a diphthong, is it?


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## Cagey

I would put the primary stress on 'i': _Cassic*i*acum._

When the penult [second from the last syllable] is long, it takes the accent. When it is short, as 'a' is in this case, the accent goes to the antepenult [the syllable before the penult -- the third from the end].


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## promulgate

How do you know the penult in this case is short?


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## Cagey

I don't really know the quantities of this particular word, but in the combinations of* ia* that I know, both vowels are short.

Do you have a reason to think it is long?


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## promulgate

I don't know whether it is long or short.


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## bearded

promulgate said:


> How do you know the penult in this case is short?


The -iacus (masculine) / -iacum (neuter) ending was a frequent adjectival ending in Latin - especially late Latin, derived from Greek endings (-iakòs/-iakòn respectively).  The -a- is always short in those endings. Examples: demoniacus/-um from Greek 'daimoniakòs/-òn' (demonic), idylliacus/-um (eidylliakòs/-òn = idyllic). I agree with Cagey (#4).
It can be surmised that the name Cassiciacum was originally a neuter adjective. According to some etymological dictionaries, the original name was 'Castilliacum' (place belonging to a person called Castillus = the chaste one, with the addition of the -iacum ending with short a). The current name Casciago - with stress on the 2nd a - represents a common Italian stress shift (-iàgo/-iàco in Italian, from Lat. -ìacum).


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## fdb

I agree with bearded man: the ending -iacus always has three short vowels. But to say that



Cagey said:


> in the combinations of* ia* (...) both vowels are short.



is not correct. The ending -ianus (for example) has a long "a".


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