The verb “decapitate” combines the Latin words de (off) and caput (head). It means “to cut the head off,” and came into English in the 1610s, by way of the 14th century French word decapiter. The noun form is “decapitation.”
The word “capitation” also exists, although it doesn’t mean to place the head back on the body once it has been removed. It means “the counting of heads” for the purposes of levying a tax, and dates back to the 1610s.
In the early 15th century, the root caput came to be associated with the main, principal, chief or dominant item of its kind. It wasn’t until the 1660s, however, that the word “capital” was first recorded to refer to the main city of a country, being the official seat of government.
Photo: AP 照片:美聯社
The upper case first letter of a sentence came to be called the capital letter — appearing as it does at the “head” of the sentence — in around the 14th century.
The Latin capitulum (chapter) leads to the idea of “to draw up in heads or chapters” and therefore that of arranging terms and conditions in an agreement. In the 1640s this was narrowed down to arranging terms of surrender, giving us the modern verb “to capitulate,” meaning to surrender having negotiated terms, or by extension, to “cease resisting.”
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
動詞「decapitate」結合了拉丁字「de」(脫離、切斷、掉落)和「caput」(頭部),是斷頭的意思。該字源自於十四世紀的法文字「decapiter」,約在一六一○年代進入英語系統,名詞是「decapitation」。
在英語中也有「capitation」這個字,不過並不是把砍斷的頭再接回身體的意思,而是徵稅時按人頭計算之意,該字亦可回朔自一六一○年代。
在十五世紀初,「caput」這個字根開始和主要的、首要的、為首的、支配的這類之概念產生關聯。然而,直到一六六○年代,才有關於「capital」這個字首次用來代表一國首都的記錄,也就是政府的正式所在地。
而句子的第一個字母要大寫,自十四世紀左右起也叫「capital letter」(大寫字母)——顯然是因為它是一個句子的「開頭」。
拉丁字「capitulum」(章節)則引申為起草契約標題或章節、安排協議條款及條件。而到了一六四○年代,其字義便限縮為安排投降條款,因此而有了「capitulate」一字的現代字義︰依協商好的條件投降,並另外衍生出停止反抗的意思。
(台北時報張聖恩譯)
A: Japanese pop diva Hikaru Utada is visiting Taiwan, as well as Aespa. B: Yeah, she will hold two concerts at the Taipei Arena over the weekend. A: When she released her 1999 debut album “First Love,” it became Japan’s best-selling album ever. B: Her No. 1 hit “First Love” from that album even topped the chart again in 2022 as the theme song of a TV drama. A: After a wait of 25 years, Taiwanese fans can finally see “Hikki” for the first time. A: 除了Aespa,日本歌后宇多田光終於要來台開唱啦。 B: 對啊,本週末將在台北小巨蛋連唱兩天。 A: 她在1999年推出首張專輯《First Love》,甚至還成為日本史上最暢銷專輯。 B: 而當年的同名冠軍歌曲《First Love》,2022年搭配日劇播出在台再度奪冠。 A: 台灣歌迷等了25年,終於等到她來台開演唱會啦! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
The Perseids meteor shower is expected to peak on Monday next week, with the up to 100 meteors per hour, with the number expected to reach more than 30 one or two days before and after, which will surely be a treat for stargazers. The Perseids are named after the Greek hero Perseus, as the meteor shower appears to come from the eponymous constellation. According to myth, Perseus slew the gorgon Medusa by cutting off her snake-covered head while viewing her reflection in his shield. While the meteors are active from mid-July, the best time to see them is next Monday with the
A: K-pop SM Entertainment’s four-member girl group Aespa is set to stage three shows in Taiwan starting Friday. B: Great, where will they be performing? A: At Taoyuan’s National Taiwan Sports University Stadium, commonly known as the Linkou Stadium. B: I hear that Aespa has even been voted by netizens as one of the top 10 girl groups. A: Yeah, other top groups include Blackpink, (G)I-DLE, NewJeans and Twice. A: 南韓SM娛樂旗下的4人女團Aespa,週五起將在台灣一連嗨唱3場! B: 太棒了,在哪唱? A: 在桃園的國立體育大學綜合體育館,就是俗稱的「林口體育館」。 B: 聽說Aespa還被網友選為10大女團? A: 對啊,前幾名的女團還有:Blackpink、(G)I-DLE、NewJeans、Twice。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Celebrated on Aug. 13, International Left Handers Day shines a spotlight on the left-handed minority. This annual holiday aims to raise awareness for left-handed people, who have faced discrimination and inconvenience in a world dominantly built for righties. Historically, being left-handed was considered taboo or even evil, and this is reflected in many languages. The English word “left” comes from the Anglo-Saxon lyft, which means weak. Likewise, the word “sinister,” coming from the Latin for left, suggests evil or misfortune. This dual meaning persists in many modern European languages such as sinistra in Italian. Religious beliefs have compounded