Where does “bismuth” come from?
Bismuth comes from German Wismut, which derives from Old High German wizzan meaning "to know," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European weyd- meaning "to see."
bismuth (English): A chemical element with an atomic number of 83:...
Definitions
- A chemical element with an atomic number of 83:...
Ancestry of “bismuth”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Wismut | bismuth |
| 2 | Middle High German | wismāt | — |
| 3 | Latin | bisemutum | bismuth |
| 4 | Arabic | بِسِيمُوتِيُّون | — |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ψιμύθιον | white lead (as a pigment to whiten the face or hair) |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -ῐον | diminutive suffix; "suffix forming... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -yós | Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems |