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Origin and history of icon

icon(n.)

also ikon, 1570s, "image, figure, picture," also "statue," from Late Latin icon, from Greek eikon "likeness, image, portrait; image in a mirror; a semblance, phantom image;" in philosophy, "an image in the mind," related to eikenai "be like, look like," which is of uncertain origin. The specific Eastern Church sense is attested from 1833 in English. Computing sense first recorded 1982.

also from 1570s

Entries linking to icon

emoticon(n.)

"pictorial representation of a facial expression using punctuation or other keyboard characters," by January 1992, apparently from emotion + icon.

An emoticon is an emotional icon, or a pictorial representation of the emotions of the moment. These are most commonly created on one line using the symbols on the keyboard. Humor is often denoted with the smiley face :-) which is more obvious if you tilt your head to the left. ["Acronyms, Emoticons, and Lurkers," PC Magazine, August 1992]
iconic(adj.)

1650s, "of or pertaining to a portrait," from Late Latin iconicus, from Greek eikonikos "pertaining to an image," from eikon "likeness, image, portrait" (see icon). In art, applied to statues of victorious athletes, sovereigns, etc., 1801.

  • iconography
  • iconology
  • See All Related Words (4)
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More to explore

picture
early 15c., pictur, pictoure, pittour, pectur, "the process or art of drawing or painting," a sense now obsolete; also "a visual or graphic representation of a person, scene, object, etc.," from Latin pictura "painting," from pictus, past participle of pingere "to make pictures,
image
c. 1200, "piece of statuary; artificial representation that looks like a person or thing," from Old French image "image, likeness; figure, drawing, portrait; reflection; statue," earlier imagene (11c.), from Latin imaginem (nominative imago) "copy, imitation, likeness; statue, pi
semblance
c. 1300, semblaunce, "fact of appearing to view," from Old French semblance "likeness, appearance," from semblant, present participle of sembler "to seem, appear," from Latin simulare "to resemble, imitate," from similis "like, resembling, of the same kind" (see similar). The mea
scan
late 14c., scannen, "to mark off verse in metric feet, analyze verse according to its meter," from Late Latin scandere "to scan verse," originally, in classical Latin, "to climb, rise, mount" (the connecting notion is of the rising and falling rhythm of poetry), from PIE *skand-
representation
c. 1400, representacioun, "image, likeness symbolic memorial," from Old French representacion (14c.) and directly from Latin repraesentationem (nominative repraesentatio), "a bringing before one, a showing or exhibiting," noun of action from past-participle stem of repraesentare
foil
c. 1300, foilen "to spoil a trace or scent by running over it" (more commonly defoilen), irregularly from Old French foler, fuler "trample on, injure, maim; ill-treat, deceive, get the better of" (13c., Modern French fouler), from Vulgar Latin *fullare "to clean cloth" (by treadi
diorama
1823, a spectacular painting intended to be exhibited in a darkened room to produce an appearance of reality using lighting from behind it, from French diorama (1822), from assimilated form of Greek dia "through" (see dia-) + orama "that which is seen, a sight" (see panorama, on
panorama
1796, "a painting on a revolving cylindrical surface," representing scenes too extended to be beheld all at once, coined c. 1789 by inventor, Irish artist Robert Barker, literally "a complete view," from pan- "all" + Greek horama "sight, spectacle, that which is seen," from horan
graphic
"vivid, describing accurately ," 1660s (graphically "vividly" is from 1570s), from Latin graphicus "picturesque," from Greek graphikos "of or for writing, belonging to drawing, picturesque," from graphe "writing, drawing," from graphein "to write" (see -graphy). Meaning "pertaini
symbol
mid-15c., simbal, "creed, formal summary of religious belief," from Late Latin symbolum "creed, token, mark," from Greek symbolon "token, watchword, sign by which one infers; ticket, a permit, license," etymologically "that which is thrown or cast together." It is from assimilate

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Dictionary entries near icon
  • icicle
  • icing
  • ickle
  • Icknield Way
  • icky
  • icon
  • iconic
  • iconoclasm
  • iconoclast
  • iconoclastic
  • iconography
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