Where does “atheist” come from?
Atheist comes from French athéiste, derived from French athée and Latin -ista, ultimately from Ancient Greek ἀ- (not) and Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁- (to place or put).
atheist (English): A person who does not believe in deities; A...
Definitions
- A person who does not believe in deities; A...
Ancestry of “atheist”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle French | atheiste | atheist |
| 2 | Latin | atheos | an atheist; one who rejected the gods worshipped... |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ἄθεος | without gods; rejecting or disdaining the belief... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ἀ- | The alpha privativum, used to make words that... |
| 5 | Proto-Hellenic | hə- | same; together |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sm̥- | one; with, together |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sem- | together, one |
Words derived from “atheist”