"college grounds," 1774, from Latin campus "flat land, field," from Proto-Italic *kampo- "field," of uncertain origin. De Vaan finds cognates in Greek kampē "a bending, bow, curvature;" Lithuanian kampas "corner," kumpti "to bend," kumpas "curved;" Gothic hamfs "mutilated, lame," Old High German hamf, and concludes the source "could well be a European substratum word from agricultural terminology." First used in college sense at Princeton.

also camp-fire, "fire in a camp for warmth or cooking," 1835, from camp (n.) + fire (n.). In the GAR (Civil War Northern veterans' society), "a meeting or reunion of members of a post" (1874).

1670s, "to break camp, depart from a place of encampment" (military), from French décamper (17c.), earlier descamper, from des- (see dis-) + camper (see camp (n.)). Non-military sense of "go away promptly or suddenly" is by 1751. Related: Decamped; decamping.