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Where does the word "photon" come from? It comes from Greek phos, and was adopted directly into English (1926).
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Where does the word "photon" come from? It comes from Greek phos, and was adopted directly into English (1926).
Photon’s story begins in Greek: phos meant “light.” Light, combined with the particle suffix -on. It reached English by 1926 as photon. Coined by physicist Gilbert Lewis for the fundamental particle of light. Today, photon means a fundamental particle representing a quantum of light.
- Stage 1 · Greek · ancient phos "light", light, combined with the particle suffix -on.
- Stage 2 · English · 1926 photon "a fundamental particle of light", coined by physicist Gilbert Lewis for the fundamental particle of light.