Calcarine
/kælˈkær.aɪn/noun
Relating to a calcar or spur-shaped structure, especially the calcarine sulcus of the brain.
Did you know?The calcarine sulcus was named for the Latin calcar, “spur,” because an associated ridge in the brain’s anatomy was thought to resemble a bird’s spur.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
calx
“Heel; also a hard stone or limestone, with the senses historically connected to a projecting or hardened structure.”
Classical Latin
Latin
calcar
“A spur, especially a pointed object worn on a rider’s heel; figuratively, something projecting like a spur.”
Late Latin
Latin
calcarinus
“Of or relating to a spur.”
17th Century
New Latin
sulcus calcarinus
“The calcarine or spur-like groove, an anatomical term for a groove in the visual region of the brain.”
19th Century
English
calcarine
“Relating to a calcar or to the calcarine sulcus and associated structures.”
Modern English
English
calcarine
“A specialized anatomical adjective, especially describing the brain’s calcarine sulcus or visual cortex.”