Etymology

culture

cul·ture
C3U1L1T1U1R1E1

Today it means: The arts, customs, lifestyles, background, and habits that characterize humankind, or a particular society or nation. Full definition →

Middle French culture ← Latin cultūra ← Proto-Italic *kʷelō
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*kʷelh₁-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*kʷélh₁eti
  3. Proto-Italic*kʷelō
  4. Latincolō
  5. Latincultūra
  6. Middle Frenchculture
  7. English todayculture

From Middle French culture (“cultivation; culture”), from Latin cultūra (“cultivation; culture”), from cultus, perfect passive participle of colō (“till, cultivate, to grow, worship”) (related to colōnus and colōnia), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- (“to move; to turn (around)”).

Words from the same roots

Latincultūra all →

kultur

Proto-Indo-European*kʷel- all →

colonycolumnistpulleycultivateteleologypalingenesiapalingenesis

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.