Where does “капита́н” come from?

капита́н (Russian) comes from French capitaine, from Middle French capitaine, from Old French capitaine, from Latin capitāneus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic kaput, from Proto-Indo-European káput, from Proto-Indo-European kap- — to seize, hold.

капита́н (Russian): captain, commander, master, skipper, team leader

Definitions

  1. captain, commander, master, skipper, team leader

Ancestry of “капита́н”, step by step

капита́н traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via French capitaine

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchcapitainecaptain, leader
2Middle Frenchcapitainecaptain
3Old Frenchcapitaineleader
4Latincapitāneuslarge, chief in size
5Latincaputhead; headlike protuberance on an organ or body...
6Proto-Italickaputhead
7Proto-Indo-Europeankáputhead
8Proto-Indo-Europeankap-to seize, hold

via Italian capitano

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italiancapitanocaptain; first-person plural present of...

via Polish kapitan

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Polishkapitancaptain; skipper, shipmaster

Words derived from “капита́н

Every word from Proto-Indo-European kap-Every word from Proto-Indo-European káputEvery word from Proto-Italic kaput