claustrum

English

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin claustrum (a bolt, bar).

Pronunciation

Noun

claustrum (plural claustra)

  1. (neuroanatomy) A thin, irregular sheet of grey matter underneath the inner part of the neocortex on both sides of the brains of mammals; its exact function is not understood, but it is believed to facilitate coordination between senses.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Gray's Anatomy to this entry?)
    • For quotations of use of this term, see Citations:claustrum.

Translations


Latin

Etymology

Consists of claud- (to close, enclose) + -trum. From Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂u- (key, hook, nail) + *-trom (instrumental suffix), related to Latin clāvis (key), clāvus (nail, peg), claustra (dam, wall, barricade, stronghold). Cognate with Ancient Greek κλείς (kleís, bar, bolt, key), Old High German sliozan (to close, conclude, lock), Old Saxon slūtan (to close, conclude, lock).

Pronunciation

Noun

claustrum n (genitive claustrī); second declension

  1. (rare, usually in the plural) a bar, band, bolt
  2. gate, door, bulwark
  3. enclosure (confined space)
  4. cloister (especially in plural)
  5. (Medieval Latin) portion of monastery closed off to laity
  6. (New Latin) claustrum (thin lamina of grey matter in each cerebral hemisphere of the human brain)

Usage notes

  • Singular forms are almost never encountered; this noun is usually plural.

Inflection

Second declension.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative claustrum claustra
Genitive claustrī claustrōrum
Dative claustrō claustrīs
Accusative claustrum claustra
Ablative claustrō claustrīs
Vocative claustrum claustra

Descendants

See also

References

  • claustrum in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  • claustrum in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • claustrum in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
  • claustrum in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
  • Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
    • (ambiguous) to break down the gates: claustra portarum revellere
  • claustrum in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • claustrum in Ramminger, Johann (accessed 16 July 2016) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, pre-publication website, 2005-2016
  • claustrum in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
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