Anyone else subscribe to Rebecca Yarros’s newsletter? I do, and I admit it–when she sends one out that says, “Are you ready, cadet?” when a new book is about to release, I get a massive grin on my face and scream, “YES!” (I do realize the Empyrean series is not for everyone…but I’m a fan!)
Cadet, however, didn’t always mean “a military student officer.” In fact, when cadet entered the English language in 1610, it meant “younger son.” The literal translation from the original Latin is “little head.” Why? Because the eldest son was deemed the “head” and so the younger or second son was the “little head.”
However, in England (and many other European countries), second sons were usually destined for a military career. And so, by 1650, cadet had taken on the meaning of “gentleman entering the military as a profession.” This is what gradually changed the meaning to the more general “student at a military academy” by 1775.
I daresay Basgiath wasn’t what any of them had in mind back then, but hey. Words evolve, as do the institutions. 😉
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Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. 
