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Origin and history of ubi

ubi

"place, location, position," 1610s, from Latin ubi "where?, in which place, in what place," relative pronominal adverb of place, ultimately from PIE *kwo-bhi- (source also of Sanskrit kuha, Old Church Slavonic kude "where"), locative case of pronominal root *kwo-.

According to OED (1989) common in English c. 1640-1740. Also in classical phrases used in English, such as ubi sunt, literally "where are" (1914), in reference to lamentations for the mutability of things is from a phrase used in certain Medieval Latin Christian works.

Mais où sont les neiges d'antan? [Villon]

also from 1610s

Entries linking to ubi

ubeity(n.)

"whereness, state of being in a definite place," 1670s, from Modern Latin ubietas, from Latin ubi "where" (see ubi). Related: Ubication "condition or fact of being everywhere" (1640s).

ubiquity(n.)

"omnipresence, capacity of being in an indefinite number of places at the same time," 1570s, originally theological (of God, Christ), from Modern Latin ubiquitas, from Latin ubique "everywhere," from ubi "where" (see ubi). Second element is -que "and," also "any, also, ever," as a suffix giving universal meaning to the word it is attached to, from PIE root *kwe "and, -ever" (source also of Hittite -kku "now, even, and;" Sanskrit -ca, Avestan -ca "and, also, if;" Greek -te "and;" Gothic -uh "and, also," nih "if not").

Related: Ubiquitary "being everywhere or in all places" (1590s); ubiquitarian "one who exists everywhere" (1727).

*kwo-

also *kwi-, Proto-Indo-European root, stem of relative and interrogative pronouns.

It might form all or part of: cheese (n.2) "a big thing;" cue (n.1) "stage direction;" either; hidalgo; how; kickshaw; neither; neuter; qua; quality; quandary; quantity; quasar; quasi; quasi-; query; quibble; quiddity; quidnunc; quip; quodlibet; quondam; quorum; quote; quotidian; quotient; ubi; ubiquity; what; when; whence; where; whether; which; whither; who; whoever; whom; whose; why.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit kah "who, which;" Avestan ko, Hittite kuish "who;" Latin quis/quid "in what respect, to what extent; how, why," qua "where, which way," qui/quae/quod "who, which;" Lithuanian kas "who;" Old Church Slavonic kuto, Russian kto "who;" Old Irish ce, Welsh pwy "who;" Old English hwa, hwæt, hwær, etc.

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