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Where does the word "graph" come from? It comes from Greek graphein, and was adopted directly into English (1878).
Read the full story
Where does the word "graph" come from? It comes from Greek graphein, and was adopted directly into English (1878).
Graph’s story begins in Greek: graphein meant “to write.” Greek, the root of 'graphic' and '-graphy'. It reached English by 1878 as graph. Shortened from 'graphic formula' and coined by the mathematician James Joseph Sylvester. Today, graph means a diagram showing relationships between values.
- Stage 1 · Greek · ancient graphein "to write", Greek, the root of 'graphic' and '-graphy'.
- Stage 2 · English · 1878 graph "diagram", shortened from 'graphic formula' and coined by the mathematician James Joseph Sylvester.