cranium
noun/ˈkɹeɪ.ni.əm/
Etymology From Medieval Latin crānium (“skull”), from Ancient Greek κρᾱνίον (krāníon, “skull”). By surface analysis, crani- + -um.
1
Anatomy, Medicine, Sciences That part of the skull consisting of the bones enclosing the brain, but not including the bones of the face or jaw.
- The Skull is divided into two parts, the Cranium and the Face. The Cranium is composed of eight bones; […]1858, Henry Gray, “The Skull”, in Anatomy: Descriptive and Surgical, page 19:
- ‘I always ask leave, in the interests of science, to measure the crania of those going out there,’ he said.1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I, page 201:
3 more examples
- The cranium of the fowl is composed of the same elements as are present in the mammalian cranium, save that there is no interparietal.1908, J. McFadyean, “Part I: Osteology and Arthrology”, in The Comparative Anatomy of the Domesticated Animals, page 165:
- The cranial bones, or cranium (kra′ne-um), enclose and protect the fragile brain and furnish attachment sites for head and neck muscles.2010, Elaine N. Marieb, Katja Hoehn, “Chapter 7 "The Skeleton"”, in Human Anatomy and Physiology, 8th edition, page 200:
- "The cranium is clearly plesiomorphic in overall form, presenting primitive traits shared by earlier hominins," the authors wrote.2025 September 27, Julia Jacobo, “Million-year-old skull could rewrite timeline of human origin, researchers say”, in ABC News, archived from the original on 14 Feb 2026:
2
Anthropology, Human sciences, Sciences Informal The upper portion of the skull, including the neurocranium and facial bones, but not including the jawbone (mandible).
- In this study, the cranium recovered from the River Witham in Lincoln exhibited a black metallic staining on the surfaces of the teeth.2014, Emma L. Brown, Ronald A. Dixon, Jason W. Birkett, “The Discolouration of Human Teeth from Archaeological Contexts: Elemental Analysis of a Black Tooth from a Roman Cranium Recovered from the River Witham, Lincoln, UK”, in Journal of Anthropology, volume 2014, →DOI:
3
Informal Synonym of skull.