Where does “chirality” come from?
Chirality comes from English chiral, derived from Ancient Greek χείρ meaning hand, combined with the suffix -itas from Latin and Proto-Indo-European -it-.
chirality (English): The phenomenon, in chemistry, physics and...
Definitions
- The phenomenon, in chemistry, physics and...
Ancestry of “chirality”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | chiral | that exhibits chirality |
| 2 | English | -ál | Of or pertaining to. Adjectival suffix appended to various words, often nouns, to produce an adjective form. Often added to words of Latin origin, but used with other words also |
| 3 | English | aldehyde | Any of a large class of reactive organic... |
| 4 | German | Aldehyd | aldehyde |
| 5 | Latin | alcohol | kohl, collyrium, stibium; any other powder... |
| 6 | Andalusian Arabic | كُحُول | — |
| 7 | Arabic | كحل | antimony; kohl, stibnite; black coloring of the... |
| 8 | Arabic | كُحْل | antimony; kohl, stibnite |
| 9 | Akkadian | guḫlum | kohl, antimony paste |