English
clerk
Clerk comes from Late Latin clēricus ‘priest, clergyman, cleric”, also generally…’, and goes back to Ancient Greek κλῆρος ‘a lot’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκλῆρος‘a lot’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEκληρικόςklērikós‘of the clergy’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEclēricus‘priest, clergyman, cleric”, also generally “learned man, clerk’
- Old Englishc. 450–1150clerc‘clergyman, clerk’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500clerc‘a clergyman, usually in Christianity’
- Englishearliest quotation 1595clerk
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκλῆρος‘a lot’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEκληρικόςklērikós‘of the clergy’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEclēricus‘priest, clergyman, cleric”, also generally “learned man, clerk’
- Old Englishc. 450–1150clerc‘clergyman, clerk’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500clerc‘a clergyman, usually in Christianity’
- Englishearliest quotation 1595clerk
Earliest quotation: 1595, The Life and Death of King Richard the Second: “God save the King! Will no man say, amen?…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- ‘to hit, cut down’
coup, holly, holt, calamity, gladiator, calamitous, gladiolus, clade, clematis, 29 more
through Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- ‘to put’
last, loot, ladle, lade, 6 more
through Late Latin clēricus ‘priest, clergyman, cleric”, also generally…’
Today it means
noun One who occupationally provides assistance by working with records, accounts, letters, etc.; an office worker.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek κλῆρος / clerk