Science & TechnologyGreek → English
Chromatography
/ˌkroʊməˈtɑɡrəfi/noun
A family of techniques that separate a mixture by moving it through a medium that holds its components back by different amounts.
The Greek roots
χρῶμα
chrôma
colour
γράφειν
gráphein
to write
Literally: “colour writing”
The story of the word
Mikhail Tsvet poured an extract of green leaves through a glass column packed with powdered chalk in 1906 and watched the pigments spread into separate coloured bands. He named the method for those colours, and the name stuck long after the technique was being used on substances with no colour whatever. His own surname means colour in Russian, a coincidence he is reported to have enjoyed.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → scientific coinage → English
- First recorded
- 20th century
Same family
chromechromosomemonochromeachromaticpolychrome
In a sentence
Gas chromatography identified the solvent in under a minute.
Paper chromatography with a felt pen and a glass of water is the standard school demonstration.