incunabula

American  

[in-kyoo-nab-yuh-luh, ing-] / ˌɪn kyʊˈnæb yə lə, ˌɪŋ- /

plural noun

1. extant copies of books produced in the earliest stages (before 1501) of printing from movable type.

2. the earliest stages or first traces of anything.

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incunabula British  

/ ˌɪnkjʊˈnæbjʊlə /

plural noun

1. any book printed before 1501

2. the infancy or earliest stages of something; beginnings

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• incunabular
  adjective
• postincunabula
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of incunabula

First recorded in 1815–25; from Latin: “straps holding a baby in a cradle, earliest home, birthplace,” probably equivalent to unattested *incūnā(re) “to place in a cradle” ( in- in- ² + unattested -cūnāre, verbal derivative of cūnae “cradle”) + -bula, plural of -bulum suffix of instrument; incunabula def. 1 as translation of German Wiegendrucke

Explanation

The first books and pamphlets that were produced in the very earliest days of the printing press are referred to as incunabula. All printed reading materials made before about 1501 are collectively known as incunabula. These broadsheets, pamphlets, and books are extremely rare, as the printing press wasn't invented until about 1440. By the beginning of the 16th century, printing had begun to spread throughout Europe, and printed books were more and more common. Nineteenth-century historians chose the Latin word incunabula, "cradle or birthplace," to name these earliest items printed during the "birth" of mechanized printing. The term is also used for early examples of any type of art or literature.