Ferrum
/ˈfɛr.rum/noun
Latin for "iron," the metal and symbol of strength, weapons, and hard labor.
Did you know?Ferrum is the source of English words like ferrous and ferric, and it likely goes back to a pre-Latin Mediterranean word for iron rather than a native Indo-European root.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Latin
Latin
ferrum
“iron; an iron weapon or implement”
Classical Latin
Latin
ferrum
“the metal iron, especially in tools, blades, and armor”
Late Latin
Latin
ferrum
“iron, and by extension iron-based materials and compounds”
Old French
OFr
fer
“iron”
Middle English
English
fere / fer
“iron; later surviving mainly in learned and technical forms”
Modern English
English
ferrum
“a learned Latin term for iron, preserved in scientific and technical usage”
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