Etymology

phoenix

P3H4O1E1N1I1X8

Today it means: A mythological bird, said to be the only one of its kind, which lives for 500 years and then dies by burning to ashes on a pyre of its own making, ignited by the sun. It then arises anew from the ashes. Full definition →

Old English fēnix ← Old French fenix ← Medieval Latin phenix
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phoenix · noun, verb1

  1. Egyptian · derived fromb-n:nw*w-G31“grey heron”
  2. Ancient Greek · derived fromφοῖνιξ
  3. Latin · derived fromphoenīx
  4. Medieval Latin · derived fromphenix
  5. Old French · derived fromfenix
  6. Old English · derived fromfēnix
  7. English todayphoenix

From Old English fēnix and Old French fenix, from Medieval Latin phenix, from Latin phoenīx, from Ancient Greek φοῖνιξ (phoînix), from Egyptian b-n:nw*w-G31 (bnw, “grey heron”). Doublet of Bennu. The grey heron was venerated at Heliopolis and associated in Egypt with the cyclical renewal of life because the bird rises in flight at dawn and migrates back every year in the flood season to inhabit the Nile waters.

Phoenix · proper noun, noun2

  1. Ancient Greek · derived fromφοῖνῐξ
  2. Latin · borrowed fromphoenīx
  3. English todayPhoenix

From Latin phoenīx, Phoenīx, from Ancient Greek φοῖνῐξ (phoînĭx), Φοῖνῐξ (Phoînĭx). The British surname is a respelled variant of Fenwicks (pronounced /fɛnɪks/).

Words from the same roots

Ancient Greekφοῖνιξ all →

Phoenician

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.