Etymology Explorer › New Latin

Where does “chiasma” come from?

chiasma (New Latin) comes from Ancient Greek χῑ́ασμα, from Ancient Greek χῑάζω, from Ancient Greek Χ, from Ancient Greek Χριστός, from Ancient Greek χρίω, from Proto-Indo-European gʰrēy-, from Proto-Indo-European gʰer- — to rub; to stroke; to grind.

Ancestry of “chiasma”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Ancient Greekχῑ́ασμα—
2Ancient Greekχῑάζω—
3Ancient GreekΧChi; chi
4Ancient GreekΧριστόςanointed; messiah; annointed, the annointed one,...
5Ancient Greekχρίωto smear with , rub on something; to anoint with...
6Proto-Indo-Europeangʰrēy-to smear; to paint, streak, smear
7Proto-Indo-Europeangʰer-to rub; to stroke; to grind
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gʰer- →