Why is it gerontology and not geronology?
I hope this is the right place to ask this, if not please give a feedback.
According to the Wikipedia, the term gerontology is made up from two parts, geron and -logia, which mean respectively "old man" and "study of" in Greek.
I was looking for a hint, why the term has an extra -t. It seems to me that it has some indirect associations with ontology and I thought that might be the reason but couldn't find something concrete.
Thank you in advance.
etymology compounds
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
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asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
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add a comment |
I hope this is the right place to ask this, if not please give a feedback.
According to the Wikipedia, the term gerontology is made up from two parts, geron and -logia, which mean respectively "old man" and "study of" in Greek.
I was looking for a hint, why the term has an extra -t. It seems to me that it has some indirect associations with ontology and I thought that might be the reason but couldn't find something concrete.
Thank you in advance.
etymology compounds
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago
add a comment |
I hope this is the right place to ask this, if not please give a feedback.
According to the Wikipedia, the term gerontology is made up from two parts, geron and -logia, which mean respectively "old man" and "study of" in Greek.
I was looking for a hint, why the term has an extra -t. It seems to me that it has some indirect associations with ontology and I thought that might be the reason but couldn't find something concrete.
Thank you in advance.
etymology compounds
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I hope this is the right place to ask this, if not please give a feedback.
According to the Wikipedia, the term gerontology is made up from two parts, geron and -logia, which mean respectively "old man" and "study of" in Greek.
I was looking for a hint, why the term has an extra -t. It seems to me that it has some indirect associations with ontology and I thought that might be the reason but couldn't find something concrete.
Thank you in advance.
etymology compounds
etymology compounds
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
edited 21 hours ago
Laurel
31.3k660111
31.3k660111
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
asked 21 hours ago
Konformist Liberal
1757
1757
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Konformist Liberal is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago
add a comment |
I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago
I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago
I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago
add a comment |
2 Answers
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Great question! Save for the oral echo, there's no necessary relationship between gerontology and ontology. The t comes from the genitive case.
Here is the Ancient Greek Wiktionary entry for γέρων (geron). Note that, unlike English, Greek has several noun cases, including the genitive γέροντος (gerontos), the dative γέροντῐ (geronti), and the accusative γέροντα (geronta).
Now, think about the meaning of gerontology you suggested. It is the study of old men. In another language, old men might be in the genitive or dative, indicating some relation to the head noun. The root being adapted into English may come from this form. So in that case we would have geront- plus logos, which after adjusting each to fit English paradigms for Greek roots (logos to -logy with -o- as a combining vowel, gerontos or geronti to geront-) results in gerontology.
Odontology behaves in a similar way, with the root being ὀδούς (odous) but changing in the genitive form to ὀδόντος (odontos). (See also orthodontics and other toothy variants.)
More generally, these are examples of classical compounds.
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
add a comment |
The root is the genitive “gerontos”:
Gerontology
1903, coined in English from geronto-, used as combining form of Greek geron (genitive gerontos) "old man."
Etymonline
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
add a comment |
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2 Answers
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2 Answers
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active
oldest
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Great question! Save for the oral echo, there's no necessary relationship between gerontology and ontology. The t comes from the genitive case.
Here is the Ancient Greek Wiktionary entry for γέρων (geron). Note that, unlike English, Greek has several noun cases, including the genitive γέροντος (gerontos), the dative γέροντῐ (geronti), and the accusative γέροντα (geronta).
Now, think about the meaning of gerontology you suggested. It is the study of old men. In another language, old men might be in the genitive or dative, indicating some relation to the head noun. The root being adapted into English may come from this form. So in that case we would have geront- plus logos, which after adjusting each to fit English paradigms for Greek roots (logos to -logy with -o- as a combining vowel, gerontos or geronti to geront-) results in gerontology.
Odontology behaves in a similar way, with the root being ὀδούς (odous) but changing in the genitive form to ὀδόντος (odontos). (See also orthodontics and other toothy variants.)
More generally, these are examples of classical compounds.
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
add a comment |
Great question! Save for the oral echo, there's no necessary relationship between gerontology and ontology. The t comes from the genitive case.
Here is the Ancient Greek Wiktionary entry for γέρων (geron). Note that, unlike English, Greek has several noun cases, including the genitive γέροντος (gerontos), the dative γέροντῐ (geronti), and the accusative γέροντα (geronta).
Now, think about the meaning of gerontology you suggested. It is the study of old men. In another language, old men might be in the genitive or dative, indicating some relation to the head noun. The root being adapted into English may come from this form. So in that case we would have geront- plus logos, which after adjusting each to fit English paradigms for Greek roots (logos to -logy with -o- as a combining vowel, gerontos or geronti to geront-) results in gerontology.
Odontology behaves in a similar way, with the root being ὀδούς (odous) but changing in the genitive form to ὀδόντος (odontos). (See also orthodontics and other toothy variants.)
More generally, these are examples of classical compounds.
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
add a comment |
Great question! Save for the oral echo, there's no necessary relationship between gerontology and ontology. The t comes from the genitive case.
Here is the Ancient Greek Wiktionary entry for γέρων (geron). Note that, unlike English, Greek has several noun cases, including the genitive γέροντος (gerontos), the dative γέροντῐ (geronti), and the accusative γέροντα (geronta).
Now, think about the meaning of gerontology you suggested. It is the study of old men. In another language, old men might be in the genitive or dative, indicating some relation to the head noun. The root being adapted into English may come from this form. So in that case we would have geront- plus logos, which after adjusting each to fit English paradigms for Greek roots (logos to -logy with -o- as a combining vowel, gerontos or geronti to geront-) results in gerontology.
Odontology behaves in a similar way, with the root being ὀδούς (odous) but changing in the genitive form to ὀδόντος (odontos). (See also orthodontics and other toothy variants.)
More generally, these are examples of classical compounds.
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
Great question! Save for the oral echo, there's no necessary relationship between gerontology and ontology. The t comes from the genitive case.
Here is the Ancient Greek Wiktionary entry for γέρων (geron). Note that, unlike English, Greek has several noun cases, including the genitive γέροντος (gerontos), the dative γέροντῐ (geronti), and the accusative γέροντα (geronta).
Now, think about the meaning of gerontology you suggested. It is the study of old men. In another language, old men might be in the genitive or dative, indicating some relation to the head noun. The root being adapted into English may come from this form. So in that case we would have geront- plus logos, which after adjusting each to fit English paradigms for Greek roots (logos to -logy with -o- as a combining vowel, gerontos or geronti to geront-) results in gerontology.
Odontology behaves in a similar way, with the root being ὀδούς (odous) but changing in the genitive form to ὀδόντος (odontos). (See also orthodontics and other toothy variants.)
More generally, these are examples of classical compounds.
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
edited 19 hours ago
Janus Bahs Jacquet
29.2k568125
29.2k568125
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
answered 20 hours ago
TaliesinMerlin
1,17311
1,17311
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
add a comment |
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
1
1
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
Another one: ontology and other compounds (paleontology, etc.). Sidenote: gerontology and odontology are not compounds of ontology!
– yper-crazyhat-cubeᵀᴹ
6 hours ago
add a comment |
The root is the genitive “gerontos”:
Gerontology
1903, coined in English from geronto-, used as combining form of Greek geron (genitive gerontos) "old man."
Etymonline
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
add a comment |
The root is the genitive “gerontos”:
Gerontology
1903, coined in English from geronto-, used as combining form of Greek geron (genitive gerontos) "old man."
Etymonline
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
add a comment |
The root is the genitive “gerontos”:
Gerontology
1903, coined in English from geronto-, used as combining form of Greek geron (genitive gerontos) "old man."
Etymonline
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
The root is the genitive “gerontos”:
Gerontology
1903, coined in English from geronto-, used as combining form of Greek geron (genitive gerontos) "old man."
Etymonline
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
answered 21 hours ago
user240918
25k1068149
25k1068149
add a comment |
add a comment |
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I confess to liking the longer answer better here.
– tchrist♦
13 hours ago