Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “beryl” come from?

beryl (Middle English) comes from Old French beril, from Latin bēryllus, from Ancient Greek βήρυλλος, from Prakrit विरलायते, from Sanskrit वैडूर्य, from Pali veḷuriya, from Pali veḷur — white town.

Ancestry of “beryl”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchberilberyl
2Latinbēryllus—
3Ancient Greekβήρυλλοςberyl
4Prakritविरलायते—
5Sanskritवैडूर्यcat's eye; a jewel; anything excellent of its...
6Paliveḷuriyalapis lazuli, a precious stone
7Paliveḷurwhite town
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