Where does “căpitănoi” come from?
căpitănoi (Romanian) comes from Romanian căpitan, from Italian capitano, from Latin capitāneus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput, from Proto-Indo-European káput, from Proto-Indo-European kap- — to seize, hold.
Ancestry of “căpitănoi”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romanian | căpitan | captain of a vessel |
| 2 | Italian | capitano | captain; first-person plural present of... |
| 3 | Latin | capitāneus | large, chief in size |
| 4 | Latin | caput | head; headlike protuberance on an organ or body... |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | kaput | head |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | káput | head |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | kap- | to seize, hold |