python

Where does the word "python" come from? It comes from Greek Python, and was adopted directly into English (1600s).

Python’s story begins in Greek: Python meant “the mythical serpent of Delphi.” A giant serpent slain by the god Apollo at Delphi. It reached English by 1600s as python. Named after the serpent killed by Apollo at Delphi; the programming language (1991) was named after Monty Python. Today, python means a large non-venomous snake that kills prey by constriction.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient Python "the mythical serpent of Delphi", a giant serpent slain by the god Apollo at Delphi.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1600s python "a large non-venomous constricting snake", named after the serpent killed by Apollo at Delphi; the programming language (1991) was named after Monty Python.