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-alia

A collection or group.

Latin plural ending of adjectives in ‑alis.

Examples from Latin include genitalia, the genitals (Latin genitalis, from gignere, to beget), marginalia, marginal notes (Latin marginalis, marginal), and paraphernalia, miscellaneous articles, often viewed as superfluous (originally the private property of a married woman, based on Greek parapherna, property separate from a dowry). A few words have been coined in English from Latin roots, such as orientalia (Latin orientalis, oriental), items characteristic of the Orient.

On their model, especially that of paraphernalia, a few words have been invented on English stems in which ‑alia indicates a collection, sometimes with implications of triviality; perhaps the best-known is kitchenalia, miscellaneous items of kitchenware. Temporary forms appear from time to time, such as curtainalia and tartanalia, but the ending is not really productive.

See also ‑ia and ‑lalia.

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