Etymograph

English

polemonium

Polemonium comes from Ancient Greek πολεμώνιον ‘Jacob's ladder’, from πόλεμος ‘war’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pel- ‘to beat, push, drive’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pel-1‘to beat, push, drive’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-n-h₁-yé-ti2uncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπάλλω1pállō‘to poise, sway, brandish’uncertain
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπόλεμος3‘war’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΠολέμων3
  6. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπολεμώνιον3polemṓnion‘Jacob's ladder’
  7. mulmodernPolemonium3
  8. Englishtodaypolemonium3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πόλεμος, which cites Beekes
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πάλλω
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English polemonium

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pel-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πόλεμος, which cites Beekes‘to beat, push, drive’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-n-h₁-yé-tiWiktionary, Ancient Greek πάλλωuncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek πόλεμος, which cites Beekespállō‘to poise, sway, brandish’uncertain
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπόλεμοςWiktionary, English polemonium‘war’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΠολέμωνWiktionary, English polemonium
  6. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπολεμώνιονWiktionary, English polemoniumpolemṓnion‘Jacob's ladder’
  7. mulmodernPolemoniumWiktionary, English polemonium
  8. EnglishtodaypolemoniumWiktionary, English polemonium

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *pel- ‘to beat, push, drive’

film, felt, simply, simple, push, filter, complain, powder, pulse, pillow, fold, repeal, flaw, palate, compulsive, expel, repel, propel, pollen, pall, palatable, pelt, wallow, peloton, palatal, tuple, pulver, pollinate, muffle, peplum, pillion, apoplexy, interpolate, 63 more

through Ancient Greek πάλλω ‘to poise, sway, brandish’

palpable, palladium, palp, 11 more

Today it means

noun Any of the genus Polemonium of gamopetalous perennial herbs.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “polemonium”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek πόλεμος, Ancient Greek πάλλω. 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 *pel- / polemonium

Shirt and support for this word