helium

Where does the word "helium" come from? It comes from Greek helios, and was adopted directly into English (1868).

Helium’s story begins in Greek: helios meant “the sun.” The sun, since the element was first detected in the sun's spectrum before being found on earth. It reached English by 1868 as helium. Coined by astronomers after spotting an unexplained line in the sun's spectrum. Today, helium means a light, colorless, inert gaseous chemical element.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient helios "the sun", the sun, since the element was first detected in the sun's spectrum before being found on earth.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1868 helium "a light, inert gaseous element", coined by astronomers after spotting an unexplained line in the sun's spectrum.