Latvian

Alternative forms

• (obsolete terms) konings, koniņš, kēnings
• (archaic term) ķoniņš

Noun

ķēniņš m (1st declension, feminine form: ķēniņiene)

1. (dated) king (the monarch of a kingdom)

   kungs un kēniņš‎ ― lord and king (expression used to address a king)

   būt kungam un kēniņam‎ ― to be lord and king (to be the absolute chief)

   zvēru kēniņš‎ ― the king of beasts (i.e., the lion)

   kēniņa pils‎ ― the king's castle, the royal castle

   ik vakarus ministrs ziņoja, ka viss kārtībā, un neviena ļauna skaņa neaizskāra kēniņa ausis‎ ― every evening the minister reported that everything (was) fine, and no bad sounds reached the king's ears

   pašreizīgas saimnieks varēja būt pilnīgs kungs un kēniņš savā namā, savā zemē‎ ― the current owner could be fully lord and king in his own house, in his own land

Declension

Usage notes

Except for a few expressions, ķēniņš has mostly been replaced by its synonym karalis in current usage.

Synonyms

• cars
• imperators
• karalis
• ķeizars

Derived terms

• zvēru ķēniņš
• ķēnišķīgs

References

1. ↑ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992), “ķēniņš”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, ISBN 9984-700-12-7