Capitulators

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of individuals who surrender or yield to an opposing force or authority
2. Those who agree to terms or conditions during negotiations that signify authorizing defeat
3. People who relinquish control or power in a situation, often in a formal context or under duress

Etymology: "Capitulators" is the plural of "capitulator", which is formed from the verb "capitulate" and the agent suffix "-or", meaning one who performs the action. The verb "capitulate" comes from Medieval Latin "capitulare", "to draw up under headings", from "capitulum", "a little head" or "chapter", the same root that gives English "chapter". A capitulation was originally an agreement organised in numbered articles, and only later came to mean surrendering on those terms. That shift is the heart of the story. A treaty drafted as a list of headed clauses was, in effect, a set of terms, and the act of accepting those terms became giving in. So those who capitulate are, at root, people who have agreed to the articles of a settlement, usually because they have no better option left.