English
emblem
Emblem comes from Latin emblēma ‘raised ornaments on vessels, tessellated work,…’, from Ancient Greek ἔμβλημα ‘an insertion’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-1‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-1reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnō1reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλω2‘to throw’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐμβάλλω3embálleinas ἐμβάλλειν‘to put in, to lay on’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔμβλημα3émblēma‘an insertion’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEemblēma3‘raised ornaments on vessels, tessellated work, mosaic’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400embleme3
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1604–1605emblem3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω
- 3 Wiktionary, English emblem
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1604–1605, William Shakespeare, All’s Well, that Ends Well: “His ſicatrice, with an Embleme of warre, heere on…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnōWiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω‘to throw’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐμβάλλωWiktionary, English emblemembálleinas ἐμβάλλειν‘to put in, to lay on’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔμβλημαWiktionary, English emblemémblēma‘an insertion’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEemblēmaWiktionary, English emblem‘raised ornaments on vessels, tessellated work, mosaic’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400emblemeWiktionary, English emblem
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1604–1605emblemWiktionary, English emblem. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1604–1605, William Shakespeare, All’s Well, that Ends Well: “His ſicatrice, with an Embleme of warre, heere on…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’
ball, quail, quill, quell, obelisk, pul, 64 more
through Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō
symbolic, ballistic, ballista, symbolist, 35 more
through Ancient Greek βάλλω ‘to throw’
problem, devil, symbol, metabolic, hyperbolic, parabolic, anabolic, parable, metabolize, hyperbola, 34 more
through Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω ‘to put in, to lay on’
Today it means
noun A representative symbol, such as a trademark, a badge or logo.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “emblem”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek βάλλω, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω. 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 *gʷelH- / emblem