Where does “Kapkaupunki” come from?
Kapkaupunki (Finnish) comes from Finnish Kap, from German kap, from Middle Low German kap, from Middle French cap, from Old Occitan cap, from Vulgar Latin capus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput — to seize, hold.
Ancestry of “Kapkaupunki”, step by step
Kapkaupunki traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Finnish Kap
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finnish | Kap | the Cape region in Southern Africa |
| 2 | German | kap | cape (headland) |
| 3 | Middle Low German | kap | — |
| 4 | Middle French | cap | head |
| 5 | Old Occitan | cap | — |
| 6 | Vulgar Latin | capus | — |
| 7 | Latin | caput | head; headlike protuberance on an organ or body... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | kaput | head |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | káput | head |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | kap- | to seize, hold |
via Finnish kaupunki
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finnish | kaupunki | town; city |
| 2 | Old Gutnish | kaupungr | marketplace |
| 3 | Old Norse | kaupangr | marketplace |
| 4 | Old Norse | kaup | purchase |
| 5 | Old Norse | kaupa | to buy |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | kaupōną | to buy; trade |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | kaupô | innkeeper; merchant |
| 8 | Latin | caupo | Tradesman; Innkeeper, shopkeeper |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | kaup- | — |