Skip to content

Vatican

proper noun

  1. independent city-state enclaved within Rome, Italy under the sovereignty of the Holy See; world's smallest sovereign state
L254205 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈvæ.tɪ.kən/

adj

Etymology: Learned borrowing from Latin Vātī̆cānus (“Vatican Hill”), further etymology unknown. The connection to vāticinārī (“to prophesy, oracle”) is folk-etymological.

  1. Relating to the Vatican City state.

    Unlike most other countries in the world, citizenship in Vatican City isn’t solely provided to people that are born in the country. As there are no hospitals in the Vatican State, virtually no one is born in there. Instead, Vatican citizenship is provided on a ‘jus officii’ basis.

name

Etymology: Learned borrowing from Latin Vātī̆cānus (“Vatican Hill”), further etymology unknown. The connection to vāticinārī (“to prophesy, oracle”) is folk-etymological.

  1. The official residence of the Pope within Vatican City, the Vatican or Apostolic Palace.
  2. The papal government; the papacy, the Holy See.
  3. A city-state in Southern Europe, an enclave within the city of Rome, Italy.

    Unlike most other countries in the world, citizenship in Vatican City isn’t solely provided to people that are born in the country. As there are no hospitals in the Vatican State, virtually no one is born in there. Instead, Vatican citizenship is provided on a ‘jus officii’ basis.

  4. The Vatican Hill in Rome, where the palace and Vatican City are located.

    He [Caligula] began to build a circus upon the Vatican.