Etymology Map
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Surgery

4 stages from Greek to English.

Today it means the treatment of injuries or disease by cutting open the body

Where does the word "surgery" come from? It comes from Greek kheirourgía, passing through Latin and Anglo-Norman before entering English (1300s).

1
Stage 1 of 4
kheirourgía
Greek · ancient
"manual work, surgery"
'handwork', kheir 'hand' + ergon 'work'; the Hippocratic treatises On Fractures and On Joints set out surgical techniques
2
Stage 2 of 4
chirurgia
Latin · classical
"surgery"
borrowed from Greek; Celsus's De Medicina (c. AD 30) devotes its last books to surgery
3
Stage 3 of 4
surgerie
Anglo-Norman · 1200s
"surgery"
worn down from Old French cirurgie
4
Stage 4 of 4
surgery
English · 1300s
"operative medicine"
Henry VIII's charter of 1540 united London's barbers and surgeons in one company; British doctors' 'surgery' hours come from the same word
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Surgery’s story begins in Greek: kheirourgía meant “manual work, surgery.” 'handwork', kheir 'hand' + ergon 'work'; the Hippocratic treatises On Fractures and On Joints set out surgical techniques. By classical, the word had taken hold in Latin as chirurgia. Borrowed from Greek; Celsus's De Medicina (c. AD 30) devotes its last books to surgery. From there it passed into Anglo-Norman as surgerie by 1200s. Worn down from Old French cirurgie. It reached English by 1300s as surgery. Henry VIII's charter of 1540 united London's barbers and surgeons in one company; British doctors' 'surgery' hours come from the same word. Today, surgery means the treatment of injuries or disease by cutting open the body.