By Julia Hornedo
Have you ever wondered the significance of your birthstone? Not just the properties the stones are said to represent, but where the words for different gems come from, and what their Meaning is? Let’s investigate this using something called etymology, or the study of how words evolve through history.
“6×6” garnet and 14k gold necklace from Eve’s “Sacred Geometries” series.
Starting with January, the word garnet has origins in the Medieval Latin granatum, meaning “of a dark red color.” Very fitting for a famously red gem! But did you know that granatum is related to the word granum, which means “grain” and is found in the word pomegranate? The pome- in pomegranate means “apple,”which at the time just referred to any fruit. I don’t know about you, but now I can’t stop picturing a pomegranate filled with juicy red little garnets!
“With enthusiasm” amethyst ring from Eve’s “Alone Together” series
Moving on to February, the word for amethyst is derived from Greek amethystos, which meant “not intoxicating or drunk.” If you can remember vocab lessons from elementary school you might recall that the a- prefix means “not.” It is followed by –methystos, which comes from the words methyskein, meaning “to make drunk,” and methys, meaning “wine,” which itself comes from the Proto-Indo-European word medhu, or “mead.” What this illustrates for us is that in ancient Greek culture, amethyst as a stone was thought to prevent drunkenness, perhaps through its purple, wine like coloring.
“Suspended Motion” 14k white gold, aquamarine and diamond earrings from Eve’s “Dwelling and Habitats” series.
March’s stone, aquamarine, comes from Latin aqua marina which literally translates to “sea water.” The Latin phrase itself comes from Proto Indo European akwa, or “water” and mori, or “body of water.” It’s clear that the stone is named for its blue green coloring, and the way it resembles waves in the ocean, reflecting a clear blue sky.
“Fire and Ice” diamond, 18k white gold and 18k rose gold pendant from Eve’s “Aux Portes du Passé” series.
April’s iconic diamond originated from the Latin adamantem, which could be taken to mean “the hardest metal,” but was really referring to a mythical, nonexistent metal revered for its supposed hardness. The Latin word comes from the Greek adamas, which means “unbreakable or inflexible.” Remind you of anything? It’s also the origin for the English word “adamant” which is used to refer to someone who refuses to budge on something. Diamonds sure are stubborn, they’re the hardest gemstone!
“Via dell Abondanza” emerald necklace from Eve’s “Pompeii” series
The word for Emerald, the birthstone for the month or May, comes from the Greek smaragdos, which just meant “green gem.” And this is because originally, the word for emeralds could refer to both the true emeralds we know today, as well as malachite.
“Beat egg yolks & sugar together” pearl and sapphire earrings from Eve’s “Just Desserts” series.
Although pearls aren’t stones, they are the modern birthstone for the month of June. The word for pearl comes from the Latin perna, which referred both to the sea mussels that held pearls and pearls themselves. But the word translates directly to “ham haunch.” This is because mussels resemble hams in shape. Its no surprise either, pearls can be very scrumptious looking!
“Fiery Acanthus” ruby, platinum and diamond ring from Eve’s “Acanthus” series
The word for ruby, July’s birthstone, comes from Medieval Latin’s rubinis lapis, meaning “red stone,” rubinis meaning “red” and “lapis” meaning “stone.” This comes from the Latin rubeus meaning “red,” which itself comes from Proto-Indo-European reudh meaning “red or ruddy.” Rubies are famous for being red, but who knew they literally meant “red?”
“A Cool Riesling” 14k gold and peridot earrings from Eve’s “In Great Spirits” series.
The month of August is an odd one, if only because the origins of its birthstone are so mysterious. The word peridot can be traced back to Medieval Latin peridotus, but no one has any clue what peridotus mean or where it came from. Sorry, August babies!
“Barring unforeseen circumstances” sapphires earrings from Eve’s “Alone Together” series.
September is the month of the highly prized sapphires, and the word for sapphire comes from Greek sappheiros, which translates to “blue stone” but was actually originally referring to lapis lazuli. The Greek sappheiros comes from Sanskrit sanipriya, priya meaning “a dark precious stone” and sani meaning “sacred to saturn.”
“Palais Garnier” 18 karat gold and doublet opal pin from Eve’s “Aux portes du passé” series.
The word for opal, the birthstone of October, originates from Sanskrit upala-s, which just means “gem or precious stone.” The word opal is thought to possibly be related to the Greek word ophthalmos, meaning “eye.” The association between opals and eyes can be traced back to medieval times, when the opal was thought to cure bad eyesight and even make its wearer invisible. That might not be true today, but take one look at an opal and I think anyone could agree it’s a magically luminous stone.
“Found on the Ground” chalcedony, topaz, 14k gold and sterling silver earrings from Eve’s “Feathers” series.
The birthstone of November, the topaz, is derived from Greek Topazios, which was the name of a remote island in Egypt, today called St. John’s Island or Zabargad Island, where large Topaz deposits were mined. As such the Greek word topazein meant “to divine or try to locate.” Alternatively the word topaz may originally come from Sanskrit’s tapaz, meaning “heat or fire,” which would be fitting for topaz’s warm yellow coloring.
“Out of this World” turquoise necklace from Eve’s “Latitude and Longitude” series
Lastly, Turquoise, December’s birthstone, comes from Old French pierre turquoise and Medieval Latin lapis turchesius, meaning “Turkish stone.” This is because turquoise was first introduced to Europe via Turkish mines in the 17th century. Next time you see a turquoise, or even something that’s turquoise colored, think of Turkey!
Who would have thought that these gems could have such colorful histories? Some of their origins seem very fitting, and some are more surprising, but hopefully you feel you know your birthstone a little bit better, and if you’re someone who strongly identifies with your birthstone, perhaps you even feel you got to know yourself a little better!
