Dermis
/ˈdɜːr.mɪs/noun
The dermis is the thick layer of living tissue beneath the epidermis that contains blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissue.
Did you know?Dermis comes from Greek derma, meaning “skin,” a root that also gave us bizarrely distant words like “taxidermy,” literally “arranging skin,” and “epidermis,” the layer upon the skin.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*der-
“to split, tear, flay; a source of words connected with skin and hides”
Ancient Greek
Greek
δέρμα (dérma)
“skin, hide”
Late Greek
Greek
δερμίς (dermís)
“skin; skin layer”
Modern Scientific Latin
Latin
dermis
“the skin layer beneath the epidermis”
Modern English
English
dermis
“the inner layer of the skin”
Explore more surprising origins