English
graffiti
Graffiti comes from Italian graffire ‘to graffiti (a surface)’, from Ancient Greek γρᾰ́φω ‘to write’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gerbʰ- ‘to carve’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gerbʰ-‘to carve’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*grə́pʰō‘to scratch, cut or carve into’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγρᾰ́φωgrắphō‘to write’
- Italianc. 1300–presentgraffire‘to graffiti (a surface)’
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentgraffito
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentgraffiti
- Englishearliest quotation 2021same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gerbʰ-‘to carve’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*grə́pʰō‘to scratch, cut or carve into’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγρᾰ́φωgrắphō‘to write’
- Italianc. 1300–presentgraffire‘to graffiti (a surface)’
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentgraffito
- Italian, derivedc. 1300–presentgraffiti
- Englishearliest quotation 2021same form
Earliest quotation: 2021, Network News: NR and NH tackle graffiti vandalism: “The removal of unsightly graffiti on the sides of…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gerbʰ- ‘to carve’
grammar, crawl, crab, carve, crawfish, astrophotography, 80 more
through Proto-Hellenic *grə́pʰō ‘to scratch, cut or carve into’
photo, cinema, graphic, graphite, graphene, epigram, 74 more
through Ancient Greek γρᾰ́φω ‘to write’
photography, graft, demography, grimoire, ultrasonography, epigraph, sonography, 41 more
Today it means
noun Drawings or words drawn on a surface in a public place, usually made without authorization.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gerbʰ- / graffiti