"pertaining to the skull," 1779, from Modern Latin cranium, from Greek kranion "skull" (see cranium) + -al (1).
Entries linking to cranial
cranium n.
the skull of a human being,""early 15c., craneum, from Medieval Latin cranium "skull," from Greek kranion "skull, upper part of the head," related to kara (poetic kras) "head," from PIE root *ker- (1) "horn; head." Strictly, the "brain-box," the bony case which encloses the brain. Englished by Sir Thomas Browne as crany.
-al 1
suffix forming adjectives from nouns or other adjectives, "of, like, related to, pertaining to," Middle English -al, -el, from French or directly from Latin -alis (see -al (2)).