allergy (English)
Where does "allergy" come from?
The word 'allergy' was coined in 1906 by Austrian pediatrician Clemens von Pirquet, who derived it from the Ancient Greek words for 'other' and 'work.' By combining these roots, he created a term describing an 'othered' or altered reaction of the body’s immune system compared to a normal physiological response. It entered modern English as a direct borrowing from the German 'Allergie.'
Full etymology tree
- allergy (English), 'A disorder of the immune system causing adverse reactions to substances (allergens) not harmful to most and marked by the body's production of histamines and associated with atopy, anaphylaxis, and asthma; any condition of hypersensitivity to a substance.'
- borrowed Allergie (German), 'allergy'
- compound ἄλλος (állos) (Ancient Greek), 'other, another, different, else'
- inherited *áľľos (Proto-Hellenic), 'other, another'
- inherited *h₂élyos (Proto-Indo-European), 'other, another'
- inherited *h₂el- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to grow, nourish'
- inherited *h₂élyos (Proto-Indo-European), 'other, another'
- inherited *áľľos (Proto-Hellenic), 'other, another'
- compound ἔργον (érgon) (Ancient Greek), 'work, labour, task'
- inherited *wérgon (Proto-Hellenic), 'work'
- inherited *wérǵom (Proto-Indo-European), 'work'
- inherited *wérgon (Proto-Hellenic), 'work'
- compound ἄλλος (állos) (Ancient Greek), 'other, another, different, else'
- borrowed Allergie (German), 'allergy'
Direct ancestors
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris