Etymograph

English

articel

Articel comes from German Artikel ‘article’, from Latin articulus ‘a point connecting various parts of the body’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-1‘to join’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r-tú-s1‘that which is fit together’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artus1reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEartus2‘joint’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulus3‘a point connecting various parts of the body’
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350artikel3
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentArtikel4‘article’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1994articel4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin artus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin articulus
  3. 3 Wiktionary, German Artikel
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English articel
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1994, Thorsten Altenkirch, Abortion in Germany: “Well, Thorsten, that's not a compromise, since it doesn't…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-Wiktionary, Latin artus‘to join’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r-tú-sWiktionary, Latin artus‘that which is fit together’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artusWiktionary, Latin artusreconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEartusWiktionary, Latin articulus‘joint’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulusWiktionary, German Artikel‘a point connecting various parts of the body’
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350artikelWiktionary, German Artikel
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentArtikelWiktionary, English articel‘article’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1994articelWiktionary, English articel. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1994, Thorsten Altenkirch, Abortion in Germany: “Well, Thorsten, that's not a compromise, since it doesn't…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’

order, reason, ready, rate, army, art, arm, ordinary, artist, ratio, alarm, harmony, coordinate, coordination, armor, subordinate, anarchy, ornament, ordination, ornate, arthritis, adorn, harmonious, harmonic, arithmetic, ordinate, armament, inert, aristocratic, ordinator, ordinal, artisan, armadillo, rime, harmonize, ordain, ordo, armature, rta, archon, 78 more

through Latin articulus ‘a point connecting various parts of the body’

inarticulate, 6 more

Today it means

noun —

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “articel”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin artus, Latin articulus, German Artikel. 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 *h₂er- / articel

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