brachiate, adjective = having widely divergent paired branches; verb = to swing by the arms from one hold to the next
Origin: from Latin bracchiātus – with armlike branches.
Here’s another interesting word from Richard Dawkins’ “The Ancestor’s Tale” – he mentions it while discussion the astounding acrobatic abilities of gibbons, and speculating whether our evolutionary ancestors were brachiators.
Related words
brachium, noun = arm or wing. From Latin bracchium – arm, from Greek βραχίον (brakhiōn) – arm
brachial, adjective = of or relating to the arm or am armlike structure
brace, noun = something that steadies, binds, or holds up something else
braces (UK) = suspenders (US)
bracelet
bracer, noun = a leather guard worn to protect the arm in archery and fencing
It’s also interesting to see how the Latin word bracchium has changed in Latin’s daughter languages:
Italian – braccio
Spanish – brazo
Portuguese – braço
Catalan – braç
French – bras
Romanian – braţ
Rumantsch – bratsch
The Welsh word for arm, braich, also appears to come from the same root.
The English word arm comes from Old English, and is related to the German Arm, Old Norse armr (arm), Latin armus (shoulder) and Greek harmos (joint).
