English
melatonin
Melatonin comes from Ancient Greek μέλας ‘black, dark’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *melh₂-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*melh₂-‘dark, black’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*mélans‘black’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμέλαςmélas‘black, dark’
- Englishearliest quotation 2019melatonin
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*melh₂-‘dark, black’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*mélans‘black’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμέλαςmélas‘black, dark’
- Englishearliest quotation 2019melatonin
Earliest quotation: 2019, Bill Bryson, The Body: A Guide for Occupants: “How exactly melatonin relates to sleep is still not…”
Formed from mela- + tone + -in
Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- ‘dark, black’
Proto-Hellenic *mélans ‘black’
Ancient Greek μέλας ‘black, dark’
English mela-
Proto-Indo-European *ten- ‘to stretch’
…
Proto-Hellenic *tónos ‘tension’
Ancient Greek τόνος ‘strain, tension, pitch’
Latin tonus ‘sound, tone’
Middle English ton ‘tone, sound’
English tone
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- ‘dark, black’
miller, mill, meal, mild, mold, mole, mould, muller, camo, amulet, mull, bonanza, amalgam, malleable, molar, maelstrom, moulin, martel, moline, malm, amyl, 38 more
through Ancient Greek μέλας ‘black, dark’
Today it means
noun A hormone, related to serotonin, that is secreted by the pineal gland, and stimulates colour change in the skin of reptiles, and is involved in the sleep and wake and reproductive cycles in mammals.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- / melatonin