Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “papal” come from?

Papal comes from Old French papal, derived from Medieval Latin papalis, meaning "of or relating to the pope."

papal (English): Having to do with the pope or the papacy

Definitions

  1. Having to do with the pope or the papacy

Ancestry of “papal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishpapal—
2Old Frenchpapal—
3Medieval Latinpapalispapal
4Ecclesiastical Latinpapa—
5Ancient Greekπάππαςdaddy, papa; papa, daddy; father

Words derived from “papal”

  • antipapal
  • papalist
  • papalism
  • papally
  • nonpapal
  • papalize
Every word from Ancient Greek πάππας →