Longitude
/ˈlɒn.dʒɪ.tjuːd/noun
The angular distance of a place east or west of the prime meridian.
Did you know?Longitude comes from Latin longitūdō, and its deep root *dʰerǵʰ- / Latin longus is the same ancient idea behind words for length, distance, and long duration in other branches of Indo-European.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dlonghos / *dl̥ǵʰós
“long, extended”
Latin
Latin
longus
“long, extended”
Latin
Latin
longitūdō
“length, longness”
Old French
Old French
longitude
“longitude, length”
Late Middle English
English
longitud
“length; extent”
Modern English
English
longitude
“angular distance east or west of the prime meridian”