English
spatha
Spatha comes from Latin spatha ‘spatula, spattle’, from Ancient Greek σπάθη ‘any broad blade, of wood or metal’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- ‘to do’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁-1‘to do’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sph₂-dʰh₁-éh₂1uncertain
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*spátʰā1‘blade’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσπάθη2spáthē‘any broad blade, of wood or metal’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspatha2‘spatula, spattle’
- Englishtodayspatha2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek σπάθη
- 2 Wiktionary, English spatha
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek σπάθη‘to do’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sph₂-dʰh₁-éh₂Wiktionary, Ancient Greek σπάθηuncertain
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*spátʰāWiktionary, Ancient Greek σπάθη‘blade’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσπάθηWiktionary, English spathaspáthē‘any broad blade, of wood or metal’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspathaWiktionary, English spatha‘spatula, spattle’
- EnglishtodayspathaWiktionary, English spatha
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- ‘to do’
do, fact, deal, hot, fair, defense, fan, benefit, fashion, mid, feature, defence, custom, theme, sufficient, treasury, treasure, ethnic, defendant, feast, ethical, aesthetic, doom, thesis, tick, synthetic, deed, dis, theology, auditorium, auditor, demi, deem, forfeit, feral, ethic, familial, medial, atheist, medallion, 124 more
through Latin spatha ‘spatula, spattle’
Today it means
noun A type of straight sword originating from the first-century Roman Empire. It was worn typically by cavalry officers and is a long version of the left shaped gladius.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “spatha”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek σπάθη. 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 *dʰeh₁- / spatha