Icarus (English)
Where does "Icarus" come from?
The English name 'Icarus' comes through Latin 'Īcarus'[1][3] from the Ancient Greek 'Ἴκαρος'[1][2][3]. The Greek name itself derives from an earlier form '*Ϝίκαρος'[2], which is believed to have originated from a Tyrsenian source[2]. In Greek mythology, the name refers to the famous figure who flew too close to the sun with wax wings[1].
Open questions
- The derivation of the Ancient Greek form from a Tyrsenian source relies on an earlier reconstructed form. [2]
Full etymology tree
- Icarus (English), 'A Greek mythological figure, son of Daedalus, who escaped from the Cretan labyrinth of Knossos by flying with wings made from feathers and wax, but flew too near to the sun, which melted the wax in the wings, so he fell down and drowned in the Aegean Sea.'
- borrowed Icarus (Latin), 'Icarus'
- inherited Ἴκαρος (Íkaros) (Ancient Greek), 'Icarus'
- inherited *Ϝίκαρος (Wíkaros) (Ancient Greek)
- inherited (Tyrsenian)
- inherited *Ϝίκαρος (Wíkaros) (Ancient Greek)
- inherited Ἴκαρος (Íkaros) (Ancient Greek), 'Icarus'
- borrowed Icarus (Latin), 'Icarus'
Ancestors
- Icarus (Latin)
- Ἴκαρος (Ancient Greek)
Sources
- Icarus (English) - Wiktionary
- Ἴκαρος (Íkaros) (Ancient Greek) - Wiktionary
- Icarus (Latin) - Wiktionary
Updated September 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris