Etymology Map
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Church

4 stages from Greek to English.

Today it means a building for Christian worship; a Christian organization

Where does the word "church" come from? It comes from Greek kyriakon dōma, passing through West Germanic and Old English before entering English (1200s).

1
Stage 1 of 4
kyriakon dōma
Greek · ancient
"the Lord's house"
'of the Lord', from 'kyrios', lord
2
Stage 2 of 4
kirika
West Germanic · ancient
"church"
picked up by Germanic peoples along the Roman frontier, perhaps from Greek-speaking Christians
3
Stage 3 of 4
cirice
Old English · medieval
"church"
Scots kept the hard sound in 'kirk'
4
Stage 4 of 4
church
English · 1200s
"a Christian place of worship"
the 'k' sounds softened to 'ch' in southern English
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Read the full story

Church’s story begins in Greek: kyriakon dōma meant “the Lord's house.” 'of the Lord', from 'kyrios', lord. By ancient, the word had taken hold in West Germanic as kirika. Picked up by Germanic peoples along the Roman frontier, perhaps from Greek-speaking Christians. From there it passed into Old English as cirice by medieval. Scots kept the hard sound in 'kirk'. It reached English by 1200s as church. The 'k' sounds softened to 'ch' in southern English. Today, church means a building for Christian worship; a Christian organization.