The term “line” has its origins in the Latin word “linea,” which means “string” or “thread,” and by extension “line” or “mark.” This, in turn, is derived from the Latin word “linum,” meaning “flax,” as flax thread was used to make string.
1. Proto-Indo-European (PIE)
The PIE root “li-” or “līn-” means “to bend” or “flax.”
2. Latin
From the PIE root, the Latin word “linum” developed, meaning “flax.” The term “linea” derived from “linum,” meaning “string,” “thread,” or “line.”
3. Old French (c. 9th to 14th century CE)
The Latin term “linea” evolved into Old French “ligne,” meaning “line” or “string.”
4. Middle English (c. 11th to 15th century CE)
The Old French “ligne” was adopted into Middle English as “line,” meaning “a long, narrow mark or band,” “a row of people or things,” or “a length of cord, rope, wire, etc.”
5. Modern English (from 15th century CE to present)
The term “line” evolved into its current form and pronunciation, referring to a continuous extent of length, straight or curved, without breadth or thickness; the trace of a moving point.
The word “line” reflects the concept of a continuous mark or path, fundamental to various fields such as mathematics, art, writing, and everyday language, where it can denote anything from a drawn mark to a boundary or direction.