Argyrite
/ˈɑːr.dʒə.raɪt/noun
A mineral name historically applied to silver sulfide, especially the dark variety known as argentite.
Did you know?Its root, Greek argyros (“silver”), also appears in argyria, the bluish-gray skin discoloration caused by prolonged silver exposure.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂erǵ-
“Shining or bright; the reconstructed root associated with silver and brightness”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ἄργυρος (argyros)
“Silver”
Late Greek
Greek
argyrites
“Silver-bearing or made of silver; formed from argyros with the mineral-related suffix -ites”
18th Century
Scientific Latin
argyrites
“A mineral name associated with silver ores”
19th Century
English
argyrite
“A name for silver sulfide, particularly the mineral variety argentite”
Modern English
English
argyrite
“A historical or mineralogical name for silver sulfide and related silver ore material”