Napkyn

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small square of cloth or paper used at the table to wipe the mouth and fingers ; a absorbent cloth wrapped around an infant's bottom to catch waste
2. A piece of fabric or paper kept beside a plate for wiping one's lips during a meal ; a soft wrap fitted around a baby's bottom, chiefly in British usage
3. A little square of linen or paper used while eating to keep hands and mouth clean ; the padded cloth placed on a baby to absorb urine and faeces

Etymology: The older spelling "napkyn" points to the word's first meaning: a small piece of cloth. It is a diminutive, or little form, of the Middle English "nape," meaning tablecloth. "Nape" came from Old French "nappe," which descends from Latin "mappa," a cloth or towel. So a napkin was originally a little tablecloth, and the table linen was the larger item. The Latin "mappa" also gave English "map." A map was a cloth sheet before it was a drawing of land, and the medieval Latin phrase "mappa mundi," meaning cloth of the world, referred to a painted world map on a sheet of cloth.