Where does “circumcise” come from?
Circumcise comes from Old French circoncisier, from Latin circumcido meaning "to cut around," derived from circum "around" and caedo "to cut," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European keh₂id-.
circumcise (English): To surgically remove the foreskin from a penis;...
Definitions
- To surgically remove the foreskin from a penis;...
Ancestry of “circumcise”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | circumcisen | — |
| 2 | Latin | circumcīsus | circumcised |
| 3 | Latin | circumcīdō | to cut around, make an incision around, clip, trim; circumcise; ring (a bark) |
| 4 | Latin | circum- | circum- round, about |
| 5 | Latin | circum | about, around; in a circle, all around, on both... |
| 6 | Latin | circus | a circular line or orbit; circle, ring; a... |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | κρίκος | ring |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)ḱer- | dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth |