English
pygostyle
Pygostyle comes from Ancient Greek στῦλος ‘column’, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- ‘to stand’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-1‘to stand’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστῦλος2stûlos‘column’
- Englishearliest quotation 1971pygostyle2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek στῦλος
- 2 Wiktionary, English pygostyle
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1971, Anthony Burgess, M/F: “Aderyn the Bird Queen sat down; her pygostyle engaged…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek στῦλος‘to stand’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστῦλοςWiktionary, English pygostylestûlos‘column’
- Englishearliest quotation 1971pygostyleWiktionary, English pygostyle. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1971, Anthony Burgess, M/F: “Aderyn the Bird Queen sat down; her pygostyle engaged…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- ‘to stand’
state, system, stay, rest, post, stand, distance, assistant, stadium, assistance, instance, constitution, stood, contest, consistent, establish, assist, instant, stable, destination, stem, substance, testimony, destiny, distant, resist, stability, static, insist, consist, persistent, stud, stationary, prostitution, persist, stool, prostitute, substitution, extant, stamina, 157 more
Today it means
noun The plate supporting the tail-feathers in birds, formed from fused vertebrae.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “pygostyle”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek στῦλος. 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 *steh₂- / pygostyle