Etymology tree Latin cervīx Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis New Latin cervīcālislbor. French cervicalbor. English cervical Borrowing from French cervical, from New Latin cervīcālis, from cervīx (“the neck, nape”) + -ālis (“-al”, adjectival suffix). By surface analysis, cervic- + -al.