Cranium
/ˈkreɪ.ni.əm/noun
The skull of a vertebrate, especially the part enclosing the brain.
Did you know?Cranium comes through Latin from Greek kraníon, and the same ancient root also gave English words like crown and coronal—linking the skull to the idea of a headpiece or circle.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ker-
“to turn, bend, or grow upward”
Ancient Greek
Greek
kraníon
“skull, cranium”
Classical Latin
Latin
cranium
“skull, bony case of the head”
Late Latin
Latin
cranium
“skull”
Modern English
English
cranium
“the skull, especially the braincase”