Etymograph

English

school

School comes from Old English scōl ‘place of education’, from Latin schola ‘school, lecture’, and ultimately from Ancient Greek σχολή ‘spare time, leisure’.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσχολήskholḗ‘spare time, leisure’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEschola‘school, lecture’
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skōlu‘school’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150scōl‘place of education’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scole‘school’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1620school

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσχολήskholḗ‘spare time, leisure’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEschola‘school, lecture’
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skōlu‘school’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150scōl‘place of education’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scole‘school’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1620school

Earliest quotation: 1620, Thomas Dekker, The Worme of Conscience: “I tooke delights / In plucking Apples from t’Heſperian…”

The story

Influenced in some senses by Middle English schole (‘group of persons, host, company’), from Middle Dutch scole (‘multitude, troop, band’). Related also to Old High German sigi (German Sieg, “victory”), Old English siġe, sigor (‘victory’).

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *seǵʰ- ‘to hold, have, possess’

severe, sketch, severity, hector, perseverance, hectic, epoch, schema, 23 more

through Ancient Greek σχολή ‘spare time, leisure’

scholastic, 4 more

through Late Latin schola ‘Leisure time given to learning’

scholar, shul, 1 more

Another origin of school

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kʷel-‘crowd, people’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skulu‘troop, group’reconstructed
  3. Old Dutchc. 500–1150*scolareconstructed
  4. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500scole‘multitude, troop of people, swarm of animals’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scole‘group of persons, multitude, host, school of fish’
  6. Englishtodayschool

Today it means

noun An institution dedicated to teaching and learning; an educational institution.

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

Etymograph / Ancient Greek σχολή / school

Shirt and support for this word