obstetrics: the noun has its origins in Latin: obstetrīx,
-īcis [3/f]: midwife
Quī tū scīs? an tū fortasse fuistī meae mātrī obstetrīx,
quī id tam audācter dīcere audēs? (Plautus)
How do you know? Or were you perhaps my mother’s midwife,
that you dare to say that so boldly?
dīxit autem rēx Aegyptī obstetrīcibus Hebraeōrum
quārum ūna vocābātur Sephra altera Phua (Vulgate)
The king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of
whom was called Shiphrah, and the other Puah.
The Latin noun is derived from:
[i] obstō, obstāre [1]: stand before; stand in the way
[ii] -trīx, -trīcis: the suffix creates an agent noun,
i.e. one that performs the action in the root – and specifically female.
Therefore, in this case, the obstetrīx is the one who stands before
the woman giving birth.
Image: we can see her doing that in Ostia Antica.
[iii] suffix: -trīx, -cis
ōrnātrīx, -cis
[3/f]: hairdresser < ōrnō, -āre [1]: decorate, i.e. she arranged the hair of
her mistress, adorning it with jewelry
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:Latin_terms_suffixed_with_-trix
[iv] The masculine equivalent is the suffix -tor, -tōris; -sor, -sōris
cursor, -ōris [3/m]: runner < currō, -ere [3]: run
scrīptor, -ōris [3/m]: writer < scrībō, -ere [3]: write
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:Latin_terms_suffixed_with_-tor
[v] There are many examples of matching pairs:
āctor, -ōris [3/m]: actor | āctrīx, -cis [3/f]: actress
balneātor, -ōris [3/m]: bath attendant (male) | balneātrīx,
-cis [3/f]: bath attendant (female)
piscātor, -ōris [3/m]: fisherman | piscātrix, -cis [3/f]: fisherwoman
tōnsor, -ōris [3/m]: barber (male) | tōnstrīx, -cis [3/f]: barber (female)
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