Politics & SocietyGreek → English
Diadem
/ˈdaɪədɛm/noun
A jewelled band or crown worn as a sign of royalty.
The Greek roots
διά
diá
through, across
δέω
déō
to bind, tie
Literally: “a binding round”
The story of the word
It began as a plain cloth band tied round the head, Persian court dress rather than jewellery. Alexander adopted it, his successors made it the standard emblem of Hellenistic kingship, and Roman emperors avoided it for centuries precisely because it looked eastern and unrepublican until Constantine put one on. The jewels came much later; the word only ever meant the knot.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 14th century
Same family
diameterasyndetondiagnosis
In a sentence
The coin shows him bare-headed on one side and wearing a diadem on the other.