pupa

Where does the word "pupa" come from? It comes from Latin pupa, and was adopted directly into English (1758).

Pupa’s story begins in Latin: pupa meant “a girl, a doll.” Literally a girl, a doll, describing the wrapped, doll-like appearance of the dormant insect. It reached English by 1758 as pupa. Latin 'girl, doll'; Linnaeus used it for the doll-like wrapped insect stage. Today, pupa means the dormant, transformative stage in an insect's development between larva and adult.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient pupa "a girl, a doll", literally a girl, a doll, describing the wrapped, doll-like appearance of the dormant insect.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1758 pupa "the dormant stage of an insect's development", Latin 'girl, doll'; Linnaeus used it for the doll-like wrapped insect stage.