Etymology Map
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Biro

3 stages from Hungarian to English.

Today it means (British) a ballpoint pen

Where does the word "biro" come from? It comes from Hungarian Bíró, passing through Argentine Spanish before entering English (1940s).

1
Stage 1 of 3
Bíró
Hungarian · 1938
"a family name"
surname meaning 'judge'; the Budapest journalist László Bíró patented a ballpoint pen in 1938 with his brother György, using quick-drying newspaper ink
2
Stage 2 of 3
birome
Argentine Spanish · 1943
"ballpoint pen"
Bíró fled to Argentina and relaunched the pen in 1943; Argentines still call a ballpoint birome, from Bíró plus his partner Juan Jorge Meyne
3
Stage 3 of 3
biro
English · 1940s
"ballpoint pen"
the RAF bought the pens because they didn't leak at altitude; in the 1950s Marcel Bich bought the patent rights and launched the Bic
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Read the full story

Biro’s story begins in Hungarian: Bíró meant “a family name.” Surname meaning 'judge'; the Budapest journalist László Bíró patented a ballpoint pen in 1938 with his brother György, using quick-drying newspaper ink. By 1943, the word had taken hold in Argentine Spanish as birome. Bíró fled to Argentina and relaunched the pen in 1943; Argentines still call a ballpoint birome, from Bíró plus his partner Juan Jorge Meyne. It reached English by 1940s as biro. The RAF bought the pens because they didn't leak at altitude; in the 1950s Marcel Bich bought the patent rights and launched the Bic. Today, biro means (British) a ballpoint pen.