Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “ostracum” come from?

ostracum (English) comes from New Latin ostracum, from Ancient Greek ὄστρακον, from Ancient Greek δέρμα, from Ancient Greek γλυφή, from Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ, from Proto-Indo-European -íh₂, from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ — Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

ostracum (English): A fragment of pottery; The middle layer of a...

Definitions

  1. A fragment of pottery; The middle layer of a...

Ancestry of “ostracum”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1New Latinostracum—
2Ancient Greekὄστρακονearthen vessel; the hard shell of animals such as...
3Ancient Greekδέρμαskin, hide
4Ancient Greekγλυφήcarving, carved work; hole cut
5Ancient Greek-ῐ́ᾱ{{l|en|-ia}}; "suffix forming abstract feminine...
6Proto-Indo-European-íh₂—
7Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

Words derived from “ostracum”

  • periostracum
  • periostracal
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ →