fibula

Where does the word "fibula" come from? It comes from Latin fibula, and was adopted directly into English (1670s).

Fibula’s story begins in Latin: fibula meant “a clasp, a brooch.” A clasp, a brooch, describing the bone's resemblance to a pin fastening two things together. It reached English by 1670s as fibula. Latin 'brooch, clasp', since the thin bone and the tibia were likened to a pin and its clasp. Today, fibula means the thinner of the two bones in the lower leg, alongside the tibia.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient fibula "a clasp, a brooch", a clasp, a brooch, describing the bone's resemblance to a pin fastening two things together.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1670s fibula "the smaller of the two shin bones", Latin 'brooch, clasp', since the thin bone and the tibia were likened to a pin and its clasp.