English
thallium
Thallium comes from Ancient Greek θαλλός ‘green branch’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *dʰelh₁- ‘to bloom’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰelh₁-‘to bloom’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEθαλλόςthallós‘green branch’
- Englishearliest quotation 2021thallium
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰelh₁-‘to bloom’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEθαλλόςthallós‘green branch’
- Englishearliest quotation 2021thallium
Earliest quotation: 2021, Li You, Northwest China Reports Thallium Pollution in Yangtze Tribut: “Environmental authorities in Lüeyang County, Shaanxi province, discovered excessive…”
Formed from -ium
The story
Coined based on Ancient Greek θαλλός (thallós, “green branch”) (after the color of the radiation spectra), + -ium.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰelh₁- ‘to bloom’
foil, lue, exfoliation, 7 more
Today it means
noun A metallic chemical element (symbol Tl) with atomic number 81: a gray post-transition metal that discolors when exposed to air.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dʰelh₁- / thallium