English
iconic
Iconic comes from Late Latin īconicus ‘of an image, iconic’, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Indo-European *weyk- ‘to resemble’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyk-1‘to resemble’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰκών2‘image’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰκονικός3eikonikós‘belonging to or employing images’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEīconicus3‘of an image, iconic’
- Englishearliest quotation 1955iconic3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰκών
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰκονικός
- 3 Wiktionary, English iconic
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1955, 1946, Charles William Morris: “A portrait of a person is to a considerable…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyk-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰκών‘to resemble’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰκώνWiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰκονικός‘image’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰκονικόςWiktionary, English iconiceikonikós‘belonging to or employing images’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEīconicusWiktionary, English iconic‘of an image, iconic’
- Englishearliest quotation 1955iconicWiktionary, English iconic. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1955, 1946, Charles William Morris: “A portrait of a person is to a considerable…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *weyk- ‘to resemble’
victory, province, victim, weakness, witch, victor, convince, wicked, wo, conviction, invincible, wight, weakly, vicar, eviction, convict, evict, vanquish, wile, waw, 33 more
through Ancient Greek εἰκών ‘image’
Today it means
adj Relating to, or having the characteristics of, an icon.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “iconic”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek εἰκών, Ancient Greek εἰκονικός. 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 *weyk- / iconic