Where does “chief” come from?
chief (Middle French) comes from Old French chief, from Vulgar Latin capum, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput, from Proto-Indo-European káput, from Proto-Indo-European kap- — to seize, hold.
chief (Middle French): head
Ancestry of “chief”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | chief | head; leader, chief; front |
| 2 | Vulgar Latin | capum | head, chief; head |
| 3 | Latin | caput | head; headlike protuberance on an organ or body... |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | kaput | head |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | káput | head |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | kap- | to seize, hold |
Words derived from “chief”