Where does “Center” come from?
Center comes from Middle French centre, from Latin centrum, from Ancient Greek κέντρον, derived from the verb κεντεῖν meaning to prick or pierce, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱent-.
Ancestry of “Center”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | center | — |
| 2 | Middle French | centre | — |
| 3 | Latin | centrum | center ; centre |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | κέντρον | Something with a sharp point: point, spike, spur;... |
| 5 | Proto-Hellenic | *kéntron | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | *ḱéntrom | — |