nickel

Where does the word "nickel" come from? It comes from German kupfernickel, passing through Swedish before entering English (1750s).

Nickel’s story begins in German: kupfernickel meant “false copper, devil's copper.” Literally devil's copper, from Nickel (a mischievous sprite), blamed for ore that yielded no copper. By 1750s, the word had taken hold in Swedish as kopparnickel. Shortened by Swedish mineralogist Axel Cronstedt when he named the new metallic element. It reached English by 1750s as nickel. Settled as the name for the silvery-white metallic element. Today, nickel means a hard, silvery-white metallic element, or informally a five-cent coin.

1. Stage 1 · German · 1700s kupfernickel "false copper, devil's copper", literally devil's copper, from Nickel (a mischievous sprite), blamed for ore that yielded no copper.
2. Stage 2 · Swedish · 1750s kopparnickel "copper-colored ore", shortened by Swedish mineralogist Axel Cronstedt when he named the new metallic element.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1750s nickel "a hard silvery-white metallic element", settled as the name for the silvery-white metallic element.