Phyllo
/ˈfɪloʊ/noun
A very thin unleavened pastry sheet used in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking.
Did you know?Phyllo ultimately comes from Greek phyllon, “leaf,” the same root behind scientific words like chlorophyll and philosophy’s older botanical cousins in Greek naming.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
φύλλον (phýllon)
“leaf”
Byzantine/Modern Greek
Greek
φύλλο (fýllo)
“leaf; a sheet or sheet-like layer”
19th Century
English
phyllo
“a thin sheet of pastry, adopted from Greek culinary usage”
Modern English
English
phyllo
“thin unleavened pastry made in sheets”
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