English
irenology
Irenology comes from Ancient Greek εἰρήνη ‘peace’, from εἴρω ‘to fasten together’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ser-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ser-1‘to bind, put together’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*héřřō1‘to bind, to tie’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἴρω2eírō‘to fasten together’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰρήνη3eirḗnē‘peace’
- Englishearliest quotation 2002irenology3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἴρω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰρήνη, which cites Beekes, Chantraine
- 3 Wiktionary, English irenology
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2002, C. Scherrer, Structural Prevention of Ethnic Violence: “Up to now, the irenological perspective has only been…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ser-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἴρω‘to bind, put together’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*héřřōWiktionary, Ancient Greek εἴρω‘to bind, to tie’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἴρωWiktionary, Ancient Greek εἰρήνη, which cites Beekes, Chantraineeírō‘to fasten together’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἰρήνηWiktionary, English irenologyeirḗnē‘peace’
- Englishearliest quotation 2002irenologyWiktionary, English irenology. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2002, C. Scherrer, Structural Prevention of Ethnic Violence: “Up to now, the irenological perspective has only been…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ser- ‘to bind, put together’
service, series, sort, serve, hero, conservative, stream, desert, insert, assertion, reservoir, sermon, conservatism, exert, assertive, heresy, sorcery, concierge, observant, servitude, sorcerer, heretic, sark, conservator, servile, serf, strudel, sere, 33 more
through Ancient Greek εἴρω ‘to fasten together’
Today it means
noun The study of peace.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “irenology”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek εἴρω, Ancient Greek εἰρήνη. 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 *ser- / irenology