Etymologically
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aviation

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 13:11. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌeɪ̯.viːˈeɪ̯.ʃən/, /ˌav.iː-/ (UK); /ˌeɪ̯.viˈeɪ̯.ʃən/, /ˌæv.i-/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French aviation, formed irregularly from Latin avis (“bird”) and -ation,[2][3][4][5] from PIE Proto-Indo-European *awi- (“bird”).[3] It was coined in 1863 by the French aviation pioneer Gabriel de La Landelle in “Aviation ou Navigation aérienne”.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The art or act of flying: 1866 in the OED, Barnhart and Etymonline;[6][2][3] MWU dates it to 1865.[7]

Semantic evolution

Word Origins groups it with aviary and avian, all from Latin avis.[8] It came to mean the operation of aircraft, the design and production of aircraft, and the aircraft industry.[9][10] Aviator is from 1887, in a translation of Jules Verne.[2]

Timeline

  • 1863 – French aviation coined.[3][2]
  • 1865 – first use (MWU).[7]
  • 1866 – in English.[6][2]
  • 1887 – aviator.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The flying or operation of aircraft.
  2. The design, development and production of aircraft.
  3. The aircraft industry; military aircraft.

Word family

  • avgas
  • avionics
  • general aviation
  • aviator
  • aviary
  • avian
  • auspice

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  9. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  10. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin