Pissasphalt
/ˌpɪsˈæs.fɔːlt/noun
A natural bituminous substance composed of asphalt mixed with resin or pitch.
Did you know?Ancient writers described pissasphalt as a naturally occurring black material, and its name preserves Greek words for pitch and asphalt rather than anything related to modern English “piss.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pit-
“Resinous pitch or sticky substance”
Ancient Greek
Greek
πίσσα (pissa)
“Pitch or resin, especially material obtained from trees”
Ancient Greek
Greek
πίσσα ἄσφαλτος (pissa asphaltos)
“Pitch combined with asphalt; a naturally occurring bituminous substance”
Classical Latin
Latin
pissasphaltus
“Pissasphalt, asphalt mixed with pitch”
19th Century
English
pissasphalt
“A mineral substance consisting of asphalt and resin or pitch”
Modern English
English
pissasphalt
“A rare technical term for naturally occurring resinous asphalt”