Medicine & BodyGreek → English
Alopecia
/ˌæləˈpiːʃə/noun
Loss of hair from areas where it normally grows.
The Greek roots
ἀλώπηξ
alṓpēx
fox
Literally: “fox-mange”
Follow a root:ἀλώπηξ1 word
The story of the word
Greek doctors named patchy hair loss after the fox, ἀλώπηξ, because a mangy fox sheds fur in bare patches. The word entered English in the late 14th century and stayed strictly medical, so almost nobody using it knows there is an animal inside. Alopecia areata, the autoimmune form that leaves smooth round bald patches, carries the fox into every dermatology clinic in the world.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
- First recorded
- late 14th century
In a sentence
The alopecia started as one patch behind the ear and spread over a fortnight.
Chemotherapy-induced alopecia is usually temporary, which is not much comfort at the time.