column

Where does the word "column" come from? It comes from Latin columna, passing through Old French before entering English (1400s).

Column’s story begins in Latin: columna meant “pillar.” Related to 'culmen', top, summit. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as colomne. Trajan's Column in Rome was a famous model for later monuments. It reached English by 1400s as column. Newspaper 'columns' date from the 1600s. Today, column means an upright pillar; a vertical division of a page.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient columna "pillar", related to 'culmen', top, summit.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval colomne "pillar", Trajan's Column in Rome was a famous model for later monuments.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1400s column "pillar", newspaper 'columns' date from the 1600s.