Drag to pan · scroll to zoom
Drag to rotate
Tracing “”…
Where does the word "album" come from? It comes from Latin albus, and was adopted directly into English (1650s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "album" come from? It comes from Latin albus, and was adopted directly into English (1650s).
Album’s story begins in Latin: albus meant “white.” A white tablet for public notices in Rome. It reached English by 1650s as album. Record 'albums' date from the 1900s. Today, album means a book for photos; a collection of recordings.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient albus "white", a white tablet for public notices in Rome.
- Stage 2 · English · 1650s album "blank book", record 'albums' date from the 1900s.