catalogue

Where does the word "catalogue" come from? It comes from Greek katalogos, passing through Old French before entering English (1400s).

Catalogue’s story begins in Greek: katalogos meant “list.” Greek, 'kata', down, plus 'legein', to count. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as catalogue. Came via Late Latin 'catalogus'. It reached English by 1400s as catalogue. Mail-order catalogues date from the 1800s. Today, catalogue means a complete list of items.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient katalogos "list", Greek, 'kata', down, plus 'legein', to count.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval catalogue "list", came via Late Latin 'catalogus'.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1400s catalogue "list", mail-order catalogues date from the 1800s.