Necropolis
/nɛˈkrɒp.əl.ɪs/noun
A large cemetery or burial place, especially one belonging to an ancient city.
Did you know?Necropolis comes straight from Greek νεκρόπολις (nekrópolis), a term used for burial districts, and it preserves the same νεκρο- root found in words for death, corpses, and mortuary rituals.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
νεκρόπολις (nekrópolis)
“city of the dead; burial ground”
Late Greek / Hellenistic
Greek
νεκρόπολις
“a cemetery or necropolis, especially outside a city”
19th Century
English
necropolis
“a large cemetery, especially an ancient one”
Modern English
English
necropolis
“a large burial place or cemetery”
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