Etymograph

English

alchemical

Alchemical comes from Old French alkimie ‘alchemy’, and goes back to Ancient Greek χυμείᾱ.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEχυμείᾱ1
  2. Arabicc. 500–presentاَلْكِيمِيَاء1
  3. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500alchēmia2‘alchemy’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400alkimie3‘alchemy’
  5. English1500–presentalchemy3
  6. Englishearliest quotation 2014alchemical3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin alchemia
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old French alkimie
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English alchemical
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2014, Magician’s brain: “[Isaac Newton] was obsessed with alchemy. He spent hours…”.

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEχυμείᾱWiktionary, Latin alchemia
  2. Arabicc. 500–presentاَلْكِيمِيَاءWiktionary, Latin alchemia
  3. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500alchēmiaWiktionary, Old French alkimie‘alchemy’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400alkimieWiktionary, English alchemical‘alchemy’
  5. English1500–presentalchemyWiktionary, English alchemical
  6. Englishearliest quotation 2014alchemicalWiktionary, English alchemical. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2014, Magician’s brain: “[Isaac Newton] was obsessed with alchemy. He spent hours…”

A compound of alchemy + -ical

Ancient Greek χυμείᾱ

Arabic اَلْكِيمِيَاء

Medieval Latin alchēmia

Old French alkimie

English alchemy

Linked words

through Ancient Greek χυμείᾱ

chemist, 3 more

Today it means

adj Of or pertaining to the medieval chemical science and philosophy of alchemy.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “alchemical”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin alchemia, Old French alkimie. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Ancient Greek χυμείᾱ / alchemical

Shirt and support for this word