English
aphemia
Aphemia comes from New Latin aphēmia, from Ancient Greek φήμη ‘voice’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- ‘to speak’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeh₂-1‘to speak’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeh₂-meh₂1reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*pʰā́mā1reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEφήμη2‘voice’
- New Latinc. 1500–1900aphēmia2
- Englishtodayaphemia2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek φήμη
- 2 Wiktionary, English aphemia
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeh₂-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek φήμη‘to speak’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeh₂-meh₂Wiktionary, Ancient Greek φήμηreconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*pʰā́māWiktionary, Ancient Greek φήμηreconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEφήμηWiktionary, English aphemia‘voice’
- New Latinc. 1500–1900aphēmiaWiktionary, English aphemia
- EnglishtodayaphemiaWiktionary, English aphemia
Equivalent to a- + -phemia
Proto-Indo-European *uds- ‘up, out’
Proto-Germanic *uz- ‘out-’
Proto-West Germanic *uʀ- ‘up, out, over’
English a-
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- ‘to speak’
phone, focus, professor, famous, fuel, ben, favor, favourite, ban, fantasy, phase, fate, fancy, fame, profession, fatal, bee, fairy, fabulous, abandon, infant, confession, photographer, emphasis, confess, phenomenon, beacon, beck, symphony, phantom, boon, eff, fab, fay, bane, fable, foyer, banish, buoy, nefarious, 129 more
Today it means
noun A type of aphasia in which the ability to speak is lost or severely impaired.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “aphemia”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek φήμη. 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 / Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- / aphemia