hippocampus
See also: Hippocampus
English
![](Images/wiktionary/M%C3%BCnchen_%E2%80%94_Staatliche_Antikensammlungen_%E2%80%94_2013-05-12_Mattes_(18).JPG.webp)
Etruscan statuette of a hippocamp c. 540 BCE,
![](Images/wiktionary/Hippocampus.gif)
Hippocampus animation (anatomy)
![](Images/wiktionary/Hippocampus_and_seahorse_cropped.JPG.webp)
A human hippocampus alongside a sea horse.
Etymology
From Late Latin hippocampus, from Ancient Greek ἱππόκαμπος (hippókampos), fromῐ̔́ππος (híppos, “horse”) + κάμπος (kámpos, “sea-monster”). The anatomy sense is so named from its resemblance to the seahorse.
Noun
hippocampus (plural hippocampi or hippocampuses)
- (mythology) A mythological creature with the front head and forelimbs of a horse and the rear of a dolphin.
- Synonym: hippocamp
- (neuroanatomy, anatomy) A part of the brain located inside the temporal lobe, consisting mainly of grey matter. It is a component of the limbic system and plays a role in memory and emotion.
- 2019, Bill Bryson, The Body: A Guide for Occupants, Black Swan (2020), page 63:
- The hippocampus is central to the laying down of memories.
-
Synonyms
- (neuroanatomy): HIPP
Derived terms
- hippocampal
- hippocampic
Translations
mythological creature
|
brain region
|
Further reading
hippocampus on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
hippocampus (mythology) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Latin
Alternative forms
- hippocampos
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἱππόκαμπος (hippókampos), fromἵππος (híppos, “horse”) + κάμπος (kámpos, “sea-monster”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /hip.poˈkam.pus/, [hɪpːɔˈkämpʊs̠]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ip.poˈkam.pus/, [ipːoˈkämpus]
Noun
hippocampus m (genitive hippocampī); second declension
- a seahorse
Declension
Second-declension noun.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | hippocampus | hippocampī |
Genitive | hippocampī | hippocampōrum |
Dative | hippocampō | hippocampīs |
Accusative | hippocampum | hippocampōs |
Ablative | hippocampō | hippocampīs |
Vocative | hippocampe | hippocampī |
Descendants
- → Catalan: hipocamp
- → English: hippocampus
- → French: hippocampe
- → German: Hippokamp
- → Italian: ippocampo
- → Portuguese: hipocampo
- → Spanish: hipocampo
References
- “hippocampus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- hippocampus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
- “hippocampus”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers