Where does “archetype” come from?
Archetype derives from Old French architipe, from Latin archetypum, from Ancient Greek ἀρχέτυπος, combining ἀρχή meaning "beginning" or "origin" with a root meaning "to rule" or "lead."
archetype (English): An original model of which all other similar...
Definitions
- An original model of which all other similar...
Ancestry of “archetype”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | architipe | — |
| 2 | Latin | archetypum | nominative neuter singular of archetypus;... |
| 3 | Latin | archetypus | archetypical, original |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ἀρχέτυπος | first-molded; first-moulded |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | τύπος | A blow, pressing; The results of a blow: mark,... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | τύπτω | to beat, strike, smite; to beat, strike oneself |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)tewp- | to push, to stick |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)tew- | to push, to hit |