annus mirabilis

English

Etymology

From Latin annus (“year”) + mirabilis (“miraculous”).

From the title of a poem by John Dryden that commemorates the 'year' June 1665-September 1666, during which occurred several momentous events, beginning with a decisive English victory at the Battle of Lowestoft and ending with the Great Fire of London.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌanəs mɪˈɹɑːbɪlɪs/
• Hyphenation: annus mira‧bilis

Noun

annus mirabilis (plural anni mirabiles)

1. A year that includes a multitude of significant and fateful events, be they disasters or successes.
   • „The year 1905 was said to be Albert Einstein’s annus mirabilis – his “miracle year”– in which he published four important papers that set the stage for modern physics. Just over a century later, that phrase comes to my mind when I think of 2015 and New Horizons; it’s been our miracle year. Just consider, in the last 12 months…“

Related terms

• annus horribilis

Translations

year that includes significant and fateful events

• French: annus mirabilis (fr) m
• German: annus mirabilis (de)
• Portuguese: annus mirabilis m

Portuguese

Noun

annus mirabilis m (plural anni mirabiles)

1. annus mirabilis (year with many fateful events)