"the falling out of the eyebrows," 1853, earlier in French and German, from Greek anaphalantiasis "baldness in front," from ana "up" (see ana-) + phalanthos "bald in front."
Entries linking to anaphalantiasis
ana-
before vowels an-, word-forming element meaning: 1. "upward, up in place or time," 2. "back, backward, against," 3. "again, anew," from Greek ana (prep.) "up, on, upon; up to, toward; throughout; back, backwards; again, anew," from an extended form of PIE root *an- (1) "on, upon, above" (see on, which is the English cognate). In old medical prescriptions, ana by itself meant "an equal quantity of each."