cranium

Etymology

From Medieval Latin crānium (“skull”), from Ancient Greek κρᾱνίον (krāníon, “skull”).

noun

1. (anatomy) That part of the skull consisting of the bones enclosing the brain, but not including the bones of the face or jaw.
   The Skull is divided into two parts, the Cranium and the Face. The Cranium is composed of eight bones; […] 1858, Henry Gray, “The Skull”, in Anatomy: Descriptive and Surgical, page 19
   The cranium of the fowl is composed of the same elements as are present in the mammalian cranium, save that there is no interparietal. 1908, J. McFadyean, “Part I: Osteology and Arthrology”, in The Comparative Anatomy of the Domesticated Animals, page 165
   The cranial bones, or cranium (kra′ne-um), enclose and protect the fragile brain and furnish attachment sites for head and neck muscles. 2010, Elaine N. Marieb, Katja Hoehn, “Chapter 7 "The Skeleton"”, in Human Anatomy and Physiology, 8th edition, page 200
2. (anthropology, informal) The upper portion of the skull, including the neurocranium and facial bones, but not including the jawbone (mandible).
   In this study, the cranium recovered from the River Witham in Lincoln exhibited a black metallic staining on the surfaces of the teeth. 2014, Emma L. Brown, Ronald A. Dixon, Jason W. Birkett, “The Discolouration of Human Teeth from Archaeological Contexts: Elemental Analysis of a Black Tooth from a Roman Cranium Recovered from the River Witham, Lincoln, UK”, in Journal of Anthropology, volume 2014, →DOI
3. (informal) Synonym of skull.