Everyday LifeGreek → English
Georgia
/ˈdʒɔːrdʒə/noun
A woman's given name, and the name of a US state and a country in the Caucasus.
The Greek roots
γῆ
gê
earth, land
ἔργον
érgon
work
Literally: “earth worker”
The story of the word
γεωργός is the ordinary Greek word for a farmer, and Γεώργιος was an ordinary Greek name until the soldier saint made it a European one. The American state was chartered in 1732 and named for George II. The country is a separate case: Georgians call their land Sakartvelo and themselves Kartvelebi, and the western name most likely comes through Persian gurğ, later pulled toward Saint George because the fit was too good to resist.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
Same family
Georgegeographyenergyergonomics
In a sentence
Georgia introduced herself twice, once for the name and once for the state.