Cadet (genealogy)

In genealogy, a cadet is a younger son, as opposed to the firstborn heir. EtymologyThe word has been recorded in English since 1634, originally for a young son, identical to the French, which is itself derived from the GasconOccitan (spoken in Gascony in southwest France) capdet "captain, chief", in turn from the Late Latincapitellum, the diminutive of Latin caput "head" (hence also chief).