Lophornis
loff-OR-nis
Genus
crested bird
Literally: crest bird
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| loph- | crest, tuft | Greek (loph, -o) | From Greek λόφος (lophos); combining form lopho- |
| -o- | connecting vowel | ||
| -ornis | bird | Greek (ornis) | From Greek ὄρνις (ornis); used as a terminal element in bird-genus names; nominative singular |
Lophornis is a compound Greek noun formed from lopho- (combining form of lophos, crest) + ornis (bird). The word is treated as a feminine noun in Latin botanical/zoological nomenclature (ornis is feminine in Greek). The two roots are joined by the standard Greek connecting vowel -o-, which is absorbed into the -o- already present in lopho-, so the junction reads loph-o-ornis, conventionally written Lophornis.
Pronunciation
- loff-OR-nis Penult rule 5: the penult vowel (o) is short but followed by two consonants (r + n), so the penult is stressed.
Other readings
No serious alternative segmentation: loph-o-ornis is the only well-supported split.
Lophornis is a real hummingbird genus (family Trochilidae) erected by Lesson in 1829, comprising the coquette hummingbirds, many of which bear spectacular crests or tufted ruffs — making the name highly descriptive. Both loph/lopho and ornis were confirmed in the dictionary. The connecting -o- of lopho- merges visually with the initial o- of ornis; the spelling Lophornis (not Lophoornis) follows standard Greek compounding practice of dropping one of two adjacent identical vowels.