Etymograph

English

samite

Samite comes from Old French samit ‘samite (fabric)’, and goes back to Byzantine Greek ἑξάμιτον.

  1. Byzantine Greekc. 600–1453ἑξάμιτον1hexámiton
  2. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500samitum1
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400samit1‘samite (fabric)’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500samite1
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1859samite1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English samite
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1859, Alfred Tennyson, Vivien: “[A] robe / Of samite without price, that more…”.

Lineage

  1. Byzantine Greekc. 600–1453ἑξάμιτονWiktionary, English samitehexámiton
  2. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500samitumWiktionary, English samite
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400samitWiktionary, English samite‘samite (fabric)’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500samiteWiktionary, English samite
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1859samiteWiktionary, English samite. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1859, Alfred Tennyson, Vivien: “[A] robe / Of samite without price, that more…”

Every English word from Byzantine Greek ἑξάμιτον

Today it means

noun A material of rich silk, sometimes with gold threads, especially prized during the Middle Ages.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “samite”. 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 / Byzantine Greek ἑξάμιτον / samite

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