About Etymologeek

How does Etymologeek work?

Etymologeek shows you the origins of the words you search for. However, next to the textual explanation, we also include an etymology tree (directed graph) to show graphically how the word is derived and to what other words it is related. Moreover, we also aim to include word definitions and other relevant information.

Where do you get your data?

Our data is derived from open sources, primarily from the Wiktionary (licensed under the CC BY-SA license) or other public domain etymology data repositories. Much of the data has been automatically extracted: we have used tools such as Etytree by Ester Pantaleo to do that. However, we have also been gradually refining the data, making corrections, modifications, and manually reviewing some of the etymology entries.

Can I trust your etymologies?

No. Etymology is inherently speculative and uncertain. Moreover, some of the automated data extraction we have performed to build Etymologeek has resulted in errors or inaccuracies. We encourage you to independently verify any data you see on our website, and we disclaim any responsibility for your use of or reliance on it. We also encourage you to submit corrections and report mistakes.

Who is behind Etymologeek?

This website was built by Linas, the founder of Interlinear Books. Linas has been helped by Alexey (co-founder of Cooljugator), Ester (creator of Etytree), Roman (web developer), Daniel (etymology enthusiast and mathematician), and others.

What is the technology behind Etymologeek?

The website is written in pure HTML and CSS without any frameworks. It is designed to still be able to work with JavaScript disabled if that is necessary but it does use some JavaScript (including an autocomplete library) in order to improve the user experience, mainly in relation to the search functionality. It runs on an nginx server and also uses:

How do I support Etymologeek?

You can support the project by using it, sharing it with friends, and helping us correct mistakes.

How do I contact you?

You can write to us at etymologies@protonmail.com.