Where does “cemetery” come from?
Cemetery comes from Middle English cimiterie, from Old French cimitiere, from Medieval Latin cimiterium, from Late Latin coemeterium, from Ancient Greek κοιμητήριον, derived from κοιμάω meaning to put to sleep.
cemetery (English): A place where the dead are buried; a graveyard or...
Definitions
- A place where the dead are buried; a graveyard or...
Ancestry of “cemetery”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | cimiterie | — |
| 2 | Old French | cimitiere | — |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | cimiterium | — |
| 4 | Late Latin | coemeterium | cemetery, churchyard, burial ground |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | κοιμητήριον | sleeping chamber |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | κοιμάω | put to sleep, lull; to sleep |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱey- | to be lying down; to settle |