Where does “capostipite” come from?

capostipite (Italian) comes from Italian capo, from Vulgar Latin capus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput, from Proto-Indo-European káput, from Proto-Indo-European kap- — to seize, hold.

capostipite (Italian): progenitor; archetype

Definitions

  1. progenitor; archetype

Ancestry of “capostipite”, step by step

capostipite traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Italian capo

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italiancapohead; boss, chief, leader, master; end
2Vulgar Latincapus—
3Latincaputhead; headlike protuberance on an organ or body...
4Proto-Italickaputhead
5Proto-Indo-Europeankáputhead
6Proto-Indo-Europeankap-to seize, hold

via Italian stipite

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italianstipitejamb; stem; trunk
2Latinstīpespost, tree trunk
3Proto-Indo-Europeansteypós—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kap- →