Etymograph

English

chromatography

Chromatography comes from German chromatographisch ‘chromatographic’, and goes back to chromato-.

  1. Germanc. 1650–presentchromato-
  2. German, derivedc. 1650–presentchromatographisch‘chromatographic’
  3. Englishtodaychromatography

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Germanc. 1650–presentchromato-
  2. German, derivedc. 1650–presentchromatographisch‘chromatographic’
  3. Englishtodaychromatography

Equivalent to chromato- + -graphy

Proto-Hellenic *kʰrṓwmə

Ancient Greek χρῶμᾰ ‘color’

English chromato-

The story

The technique is so named because it was developed primarily for the separation of the plant pigments, which would separate in bands of different "colors" (chromato-) .

Every English word from German chromato-

Today it means

noun Any of various techniques for the qualitative or quantitative separation of the components of mixtures of compounds; all characterized by the use of a mobile phase (gas or liquid) moving relative to a stationary phase (liquid or solid) – the differences between the rates of migration of the compounds between the two phases affect the separation.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / German chromato- / chromatography

Shirt and support for this word