Faith & RitualGreek → English
Thaumaturgy
/ˈθɔːmətɜːrdʒi/noun
The working of miracles or wonders, especially as a claimed skill.
The Greek roots
θαῦμα
thaûma
wonder, marvel
ἔργον
érgon
work, deed
Literally: “wonder-working”
The story of the word
A θαῦμα is a thing you stop and stare at. Byzantine Greek turned θαυματουργός into something close to a formal title for saints credited with miracles, which is how Gregory of Neocaesarea entered the calendar as Gregory Thaumaturgus. The ending is ἔργον, work, the same piece that shapes metallurgy, dramaturgy and liturgy. Stage magicians borrowed the word in the nineteenth century to dignify conjuring.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Medieval Latin → English
Same family
thaumaturgethaumatropemetallurgyliturgyenergy
In a sentence
The chronicle credits the monk with thaumaturgy: bells that rang untouched, a spring that appeared in drought.