Etymology

harmonium

har·mo·ni·um
H4A1R1M3O1N1I1U1M3

Today it means: A small keyboard instrument that consists of a series of reed pipes, which sound when one of the keys is pressed to open a valve that allows air to pass through. Full definition →

French harmonium
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The story

  1. French · borrowed fromharmonium
  2. English todayharmonium

Borrowed from French harmonium, coined by French harmonium inventor Alexandre Debain in 1840. By surface analysis, harmony + -ium. First attested in 1847.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.