English
Helen
Helen comes from Ancient Greek Ἑλένη.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἙλένηHelénē
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEHelena
- Frenchc. 1600–presentHélène
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1602Helen
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἙλένηHelénē
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEHelena
- Frenchc. 1600–presentHélène
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1602Helen
Earliest quotation: c. 1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida: “Fools on both sides! Helen must needs be fair,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *swel- ‘to shine, warm, smoulder, burn’
swell, methyl, swollen, ethyl, isopropyl, ethane, swill, swole, phenyl, 34 more
Today it means
name The daughter of Zeus and Leda, considered to be the most beautiful woman in the world; her abduction by Paris brought about the Trojan War.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek Ἑλένη / Helen