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Ink

4 stages from Greek to English.

Today it means a coloured fluid used for writing, drawing or printing

Where does the word "ink" come from? It comes from Greek énkauston, passing through Late Latin and Old French before entering English (1200s).

énkauston→encaustum→enque→ink

Greek · ancient

"burned-in paint"

'burned in', the hot-wax encaustic technique used for the Fayum mummy portraits of Roman Egypt

Late Latin · late antiquity

the purple ink reserved for the Byzantine emperor's signature, the sacrum encaustum

Old French · 1100s

worn down from encaustum to name any writing ink

English · 1200s

"coloured writing fluid"

iron gall ink, standard in Europe from the Middle Ages to the 1900s, was used for Magna Carta and the US Declaration of Independence

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Read the full story

Ink’s story begins in Greek: énkauston meant “burned-in paint.” 'burned in', the hot-wax encaustic technique used for the Fayum mummy portraits of Roman Egypt. By late antiquity, the word had taken hold in Late Latin as encaustum. The purple ink reserved for the Byzantine emperor's signature, the sacrum encaustum. From there it passed into Old French as enque by 1100s. Worn down from encaustum to name any writing ink. It reached English by 1200s as ink. Iron gall ink, standard in Europe from the Middle Ages to the 1900s, was used for Magna Carta and the US Declaration of Independence. Today, ink means a coloured fluid used for writing, drawing or printing.