English
elixir
Elixir comes from Medieval Latin elixir ‘philosopher's stone’, from Ancient Greek ξηρίον ‘powder for drying wounds’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kseros ‘dry’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kseros‘dry’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEξηρόςxērós‘dry’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEξηρίονxēríon‘powder for drying wounds’
- Arabicc. 500–presentاَلْإِكْسِيرal-ʔiksīr‘philosopher's stone’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500elixir‘philosopher's stone’
- Englishearliest quotation 1906same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kseros‘dry’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEξηρόςxērós‘dry’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEξηρίονxēríon‘powder for drying wounds’
- Arabicc. 500–presentاَلْإِكْسِيرal-ʔiksīr‘philosopher's stone’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500elixir‘philosopher's stone’
- Englishearliest quotation 1906same form
Earliest quotation: 1906, JAMA: The Journal of the American Medica: “The subcommittee's report to the Council on Pharmacy and…”
Linked words
pairs
- elixir and xerox both from Ancient Greek ξηρός ‘dry’
Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *kseros
Today it means
noun A liquid which converts lead to gold.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kseros / elixir