English
technical
Technical comes from Late Latin technicus + -al, from Greek τεχνικός, from τέχνη ‘skill’, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tetḱ- ‘to create’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tetḱ-‘to create, produce’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*téḱ-sneh₂reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEτέχνηtékhnē‘craft, skill’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEτεχνικόςtekhnikós‘artistic, skilful’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEtechnicus
- Englishearliest quotation 2006technical
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tetḱ-‘to create, produce’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*téḱ-sneh₂reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEτέχνηtékhnē‘craft, skill’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEτεχνικόςtekhnikós‘artistic, skilful’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEtechnicus
- Englishearliest quotation 2006technical
Earliest quotation: 2006, Asaf Darr, Selling Technology: “One example of the blurring of boundaries is the…”
Formed from technicus + -al
The story
For the late 20th-century origin of the noun sense (vehicle), see Wikipedia.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *tetḱ- ‘to create, produce’
architecture, arch, textile, pretext, tassie, tectonics, tela, 17 more
through Ancient Greek τέχνη ‘skill’
through Ancient Greek τεχνικός ‘artistic, skillful, workmanlike’
Today it means
adj Specifically related to a particular discipline.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *tetḱ- / technical