Lunula
/ˈluːnjʊlə/noun
A small crescent-shaped object, especially the whitish crescent at the base of a fingernail.
Did you know?Latin lunula meant “little moon,” and the word survives in anatomy because the crescent shape was seen as moon-like long before modern science named it.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*lewk-
“to shine, be bright”
Latin
Latin
lūna
“the moon”
Latin
Latin
lūnula
“little moon; crescent-shaped object”
Late Latin
Latin
lūnula
“a crescent-shaped ornament or anatomical crescent”
Modern English
English
lunula
“a small crescent-shaped structure, especially on a fingernail”