Art & MusicGreek → English
Architecture
/ˈɑrkɪtɛktʃər/noun
The art and practice of designing buildings.
The Greek roots
ἀρχι-
arkhi-
chief, first
τέκτων
téktōn
builder, carpenter
Literally: “chief builder's craft”
The story of the word
An ἀρχιτέκτων was the master craftsman who directed everyone else on site, one rank above the τέκτων who actually cut the wood and stone. That plainer word is the one the Gospels use for Joseph's trade. Latin borrowed architectus, French supplied the ending for the discipline, and English had architecture by the 1560s.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → French → English
- First recorded
- 1560s
The same roots elsewhere
Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.
Same family
architecttectonicmonarchyarchbishop
In a sentence
The architecture of the old customs house is worth the detour.
He talks about database architecture the way other people talk about cathedrals.