cadet

In genealogy, a cadet is a younger son, as opposed to the firstborn heir. Etymology The word has been recorded in English since 1634, originally for a young son, identical to the French, which is itself derived from the Gascon Occitan (spoken in Gascony in southwest France) capdet "captain, chief", in turn from the Late Latin capitellum, the diminutive of Latin caput "head" (hence also chief). Younger sons from Gascon families were apparently commonly sent to the French court to serve as officers; as a rule, non-heirs from the European nobility sought careers in the military or the clergy. Usage As an adjective, "cadet" is used to signify a junior branch of a family. Thus, the Orléans line was a cadet branch of the Bourbon family, which itself was a cadet branch of the House of Capet.