Sycamore
/ˈsɪkəmɔːr/
noun
Origin
Ancient Greek
sykomoros — fig-mulberry
Overview
Meaning Now
- A large deciduous tree of the plane tree family (Platanus occidentalis in North America).
- In Britain, a species of maple (Acer pseudoplatanus).
Literal older meaning
fig-mulberry
Language path
Ancient Greek → Old French → Middle English → English
Earliest form
sicamor
Earliest period
14th century
Journey
The name originally referred to the Ficus sycomorus of the Middle East, a tree with leaves resembling the mulberry and fruit like the fig. When Europeans arrived in North America, they applied the name to the Platanus occidentalis because its leaves similarly resembled those of the mulberry/sycamore family.
Evolution
- Ancient Greek
sykomoros
“fig-mulberry tree”
A compound of sykon (fig) and moron (mulberry).
- Latin
sycomorus
“fig-mulberry tree”
Adopted into Late Latin.
- Old French
sicamor
“a type of tree mentioned in the Bible”
- Middle English
sycamore
“biblical fig tree or similar-looking trees”
Applied to various trees in Europe and later North America due to visual similarity.
Connections
Word parts
syko
root
fig
moros
root
mulberry
Related across languages
Latin
sycomorus
fig-mulberry
French
sycomore
sycamore
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Related to Sycamore
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.