Categories of Etymology: Etymons, Doublets, Semantic Fields

Etymology is the study of the history of the vocabulary of a language. It explores the origins of words, the ways they are related to each other, and how they have changed in form and meaning to reach their present state.

The word etymology goes back through Middle English ethimologie and Latin etymologia to Greek etymologia, a combination of etymon ("literal meaning of a word according to its origin") and -logia ("-logy," that is, "oral or written expression"). Greek etymon comes from etymos ("true"), and -logia comes from logos ("word"); therefore, the original Greek sense is "true word."

Traditionally, etymology has focused on the study of individual words. In recent years, however, etymological studies have shown a broader approach. The discipline now includes investigations of not only individual words and their earlier forms (etymons) but also pairs of related forms (doublets) and large sets of words belonging to specified subject areas (semantic fields).

Individual Words and Etymons
The study of the history of an individual word centers on the word's earlier forms and meanings. An earlier form of a word is called an etymon, the Greek root of etymology.

The principal etymons of school, for example, are Middle English scole, Old English scol, Latin schola, and Greek schole ("leisure, discussion, lecture, school").

Etymology fascinates many general readers because, in a sense, it is an answer key for the questions that naturally and constantly arise about one of the most important things in their own daily lives-the words they use.

Etymology can, for example, correct common misconceptions about a word's origin. Many people believe that the alcoholic drink called punch is so named because of the powerful effect it has on the drinker. Actually, the drink originated in India, where the recipe consisted of five ingredients (an alcoholic beverage, water, lemon juice, sugar, and spice). Therefore, the local name for the drink was a Hindi version of Sanskrit panca ("five"), which entered English in the 17th century as punch.

However, sometimes a false idea can actually create a new word. In the 17th century, English speakers heard the Spanish word cucaracha, but the constituent sounds had no meaning for them at all. Therefore, they pronounced the word with similar-sounding forms with which they were already familiar. Thus was created the English word cockroach. This process of transforming words so as to give them an apparent relationship to better-known words is called folk etymology.

Readers are especially fascinated by surprise origins. Lewd, for example, has its roots in, of all things, religion. Old English laewede meant "of the laity," hence "not in holy orders." By the 13th century, Middle English lewed meant "unlearned, ignorant." In the 14th century, the spelling became lewd and the sense became the modern "vulgar, lascivious."

Doublets
One of two or more words in the same language derived by different routes from the same source is called a doublet. Below are just three of many examples in the English language.

(1) Grammar and glamour:

Ancient Greek gramma ("letter, writing") led to the combining form grammat- ("letter, writing"), grammatikos ("of letters"), grammatike ("grammar"), Latin grammatica ("grammar"), Middle French gramaire ("grammar"), Middle English gramere ("grammar," 14th century), and Modern English grammar (16th century).

Glamour originated in Scotland in the 18th century as an alteration of grammar because of the popular association of erudition with occult practices. Hence the first sense of glamour was "a magic spell," followed soon by the familiar modern meaning "an alluring attractiveness."

(2) Cloak and clock:

English cloak goes back through Middle English cloke and Old North French cloque ("bell, cloak") to Medieval Latin clocca ("bell"). The cloak was named for its bell-like shape.

English clock goes back through Middle English clok, Middle Dutch clocke ("bell, clock"), and Old North French cloque ("bell") to Medieval Latin clocca ("bell"). The clock was named for its use of a bell to mark the hours.

(3) Dais, dish, and discus:

English dais goes back through Middle English deis, Old French deis, and Late Latin discus ("high table") to Latin discus ("plate, discus").

English dish goes back through Middle English dish and Old English disc to Latin discus ("plate, discus").

English discus comes from Latin discus ("discus").

Semantic Fields
A semantic field is the total range of meanings associated with a set of words that are related by topic but are not identical in meaning. Synonymous terms are field and word field.

A study of the semantic field of economic terms, for example, may focus on the relationship between words that have always had an economic sense and words that have had an economic sense added to an earlier general meaning. Among the former are account, buy, fee, money, and tax. Among the latter are bank, cheap, credit, loan, and recession.

A study of terms for food and drink may focus on the vast range of English borrowings from other cultures in this semantic field. Examples include French champagne, hors d'oeuvre, omelette; German hamburger, lager, sauerkraut; Italian pasta, pizza, spaghetti; and Spanish avocado, chili, taco.

These and other semantic fields are being increasingly studied from a broad historical and cultural, as well as linguistic, perspective.

Studying all the basic categories of etymology-individual words and etymons, doublets, and semantic fields-appeals to the lay person's curiosity just as much as it does to the linguist's need for semantic understanding.
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Crystal, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. 1995. Reprint, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1996.

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 11th ed. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 2006.

The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 1989.