Etymograph

English

principessa

Principessa comes from Italian principessa ‘princess’, from Latin prīnceps ‘chief’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Italic *prīzmokaps.

  1. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prīzmokaps1uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīnceps2as prīncipem‘chief’
  3. Italianc. 1300–presentprincipe3‘prince’
  4. Italianc. 1300–presentprincipessa4‘princess’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1821principessa4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin princeps
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Italian principe
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Italian principessa
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English principessa
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1821, Letters to Richard Heber, Waverley,: “The sins against propriety in manners are as frequent…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prīzmokapsWiktionary, Latin princepsuncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīncepsWiktionary, Italian principeas prīncipem‘chief’
  3. Italianc. 1300–presentprincipeWiktionary, Italian principessa‘prince’
  4. Italianc. 1300–presentprincipessaWiktionary, English principessa‘princess’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1821principessaWiktionary, English principessa. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1821, Letters to Richard Heber, Waverley,: “The sins against propriety in manners are as frequent…”

Linked words

through Latin prīnceps ‘chief’

princesse, 9 more

Today it means

noun An Italian princess.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “principessa”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin princeps, Italian principe, Italian principessa. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Italic *prīzmokaps / principessa

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