Joined: Mon Oct 17, 2005 2:39 pm Posts: 3528 Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Sapphire: 1272, from O.Fr. saphir (12c.), from L. sapphirus (cf. Sp. zafir, It. zaffiro), from Gk. sappheiros "blue stone" (the gem meant apparently was not the one that now has the name, but perhaps rather "lapis lazuli," the modern sapphire perhaps signified by Gk. hyakinthos), from a Semitic source (cf. Heb. sappir "sapphire"), but probably not ult. from Semitic; some linguists propose an origin in Skt. sanipriya, a dark precious stone (perhaps sapphire or emerald), lit. "sacred to Saturn," from Sani "Saturn" + priyah "precious." In Renaissance lapidaries, it was said to cure anger and stupidity.
Hyacinth: 1553 in this form; earlier jacinth (1230), from Gk. hyakinthos, probably ult. from a non-I.E. Mediterranean language. Used in ancient Greece of a blue gem, perhaps sapphire, and of a purple or deep red flower, but exactly which one is unknown (gladiolus, iris, and larkspur have been suggested). Fabled to have sprouted from the blood of Hyakinthos, youth beloved by Apollo and accidentally slain by him. The flower is said to have the letters "AI" or "AIAI" on its petals. The modern use in ref. to a flowering plant genus is from 1578.
Jacinth: c.1230, an ancient blue gem (probably sapphire), from O.Fr. iacinte, from L. hyacinthus (see hyacinth). In modern use, a reddish-orange gem.
Joined: Mon Oct 17, 2005 2:39 pm Posts: 3528 Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Nah, just real-world mumbo jumbo. It turns out that I sometimes have to actually do work at my day job. I keep telling them that they need to pay me and I need to do whatever I want... but they keep insisting that I go to the office and work.
Seriously though, I had a large project that was finishing up and then my Canada trip, and I had to put gems by the wayside. Also look for me to be gone for an extended bit in October due to testing in southern CA and AZ.
P.S. Just like sappheiros probably didn't mean "sapphire", hyakinthos probably didn't mean "hyacinth".
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2007 3:42 pm Posts: 4091 Location: the Netherlands
funny ey, how all these names have different meanings over time. Here we are quarrelling about wether or not we can call some cuprian tourmaline paraiba... Hell, as soon as the trade makes more money out of, let's say, belgian tourmaline the brazillian stuff will get sold as belgina... and the name paraiba will leave the historians of the future guessing what it was...
The year 3012: Belgina tourmaline! Now risen to 450000000 doleuro a carat!!! Gemologyonline.com post number 23426987509756437853: now what is this paraiba stuff all these 1000 year old posts are about? The imageshack pictures they refer to are all gone....
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