Etymograph

English

principicide

Principicide comes from Latin prī̆nceps, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Italic *prīzmokaps.

  1. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prīzmokaps1uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprī̆nceps2
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1868principicide2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin princeps
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English principicide
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1868, Victoria. [From our Melbourne Correspondent.]: “The law has been vindicated, and the outraged feelings…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prīzmokapsWiktionary, Latin princepsuncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprī̆ncepsWiktionary, English principicide
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1868principicideWiktionary, English principicide. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1868, Victoria. [From our Melbourne Correspondent.]: “The law has been vindicated, and the outraged feelings…”

Linked words

through Latin prī̆nceps

princesse, 9 more

Today it means

noun The killing of a prince.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “principicide”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin princeps. 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 / principicide

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