Etymology Explorer › Finnish

Where does “kapu” come from?

kapu (Finnish) comes from Finnish kapteeni, from Swedish kapten, from Old Swedish kapiten, from Old French capitaine, from Latin capitāneus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput, from Proto-Indo-European káput — to seize, hold.

kapu (Finnish): captain; pin

Definitions

  1. captain; pin

Ancestry of “kapu”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1FinnishkapteeniA captain; A pilot in command
2Swedishkaptencaptain; the person lawfully in command of a...
3Old Swedishkapiten—
4Old Frenchcapitaineleader
5Latincapitāneus—
6Latincaputhead; headlike protuberance on an organ or body...
7Proto-Italickaputhead
8Proto-Indo-Europeankáputhead
9Proto-Indo-Europeankap-to seize, hold
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kap- →