Castrametation is a term that describes the planning and layout of a military camp. The word was coined by English naturalist Robert Plot in his 1686 work Natural History of Staffordshire, focusing on Roman military tactics. It originates from the Latin words castra, meaning “military encampment”, and metari, which translates to “to measure off”. The term castra is the plural form of the noun castrum, which means “castle”. It is believed to stem from Proto-Italic kes (“to cut”) and may have connections to castrare, the root of “castrate”. On the other hand, metari comes from Proto-Germanic metana and Proto-Indo-European med, both meaning “measure”. This same root is found in words like accommodate, meditate, medicate, empty, modest, and more.
