Everyday LifeGreek → English
Paper
/ˈpeɪpər/noun
A thin sheet made from pressed plant fibre, used for writing, printing and wrapping.
The Greek roots
πάπυρος
pápyros
the papyrus reed
Literally: “papyrus reed”
Follow a root:πάπυρος3 words
The story of the word
Papyrus is not paper. The Egyptian sheet was made by laying strips of pith crosswise and beating them together, while real paper is pulped fibre poured on a screen, a Chinese invention that reached Europe through the Arab world around the twelfth century. The new material simply inherited the old name, and the Greek word itself was probably borrowed from Egyptian. The reed also stands behind Bible, by way of Byblos, the port that traded it.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 14th century
The same roots elsewhere
Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.
Same family
papyruspapier-machepaperback
In a sentence
She writes lists on paper and has never once lost one.