English
sinciput
Sinciput comes from Latin sinciput ‘half a head”’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kap-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kap-1‘head’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*káput2‘head’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaput2‘head’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaput3‘head’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsinciput4‘half a head”’
- Englishearliest quotation 1964sinciput4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *káput
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin caput
- 3 Wiktionary, Latin sinciput
- 4 Wiktionary, English sinciput
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1964, International Abstracts of Surgery: “The cranial anomalies occurred either in the occiput or…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kap-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *káput‘head’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*káputWiktionary, Latin caput‘head’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaputWiktionary, Latin caput‘head’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaputWiktionary, Latin sinciput‘head’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsinciputWiktionary, English sinciput‘half a head”’
- Englishearliest quotation 1964sinciputWiktionary, English sinciput. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1964, International Abstracts of Surgery: “The cranial anomalies occurred either in the occiput or…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kap- ‘head’
had, case, except, heavy, cash, catch, accept, receive, behavior, capable, achieve, cable, heavily, capacity, chase, capture, reception, occupation, perception, haven, behave, recipe, hawk, caption, captive, capsule, susceptible, deception, recipient, captivity, cater, anticipation, anticipate, cassette, deceive, chassis, deceptive, casket, deceit, conceive, 132 more
through Proto-Indo-European *káput ‘head’
through Proto-Italic *kaput ‘head’
capitalism, capitalize, capitan, capote, escapade, capitaine, 59 more
through Latin caput ‘head’
capital, captain, chapter, escape, cape, chef, cattle, chapel, capitol, cabin, capita, cad, precipitation, mischief, chaplain, mischievous, capillary, capo, chieftain, cabana, capa, caddie, chattel, capitulate, precipitate, occipital, scamper, scamp, chabot, precipitous, jefe, dishevelled, chaperon, capuchin, cabochon, kaput, caput, 67 more
Today it means
noun The front part of the head or skull (as contradistinct from occiput).
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “sinciput”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *káput, Latin caput, Latin sinciput. 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-Indo-European *kap- / sinciput