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Etymology and origin of the English word curricular

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1798 Spirit of Public Journals
Ultimate origin
Latin currō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English curriculum
English curricular

Pronunciation

  • UK: /kəˈɹɪk.jə.lə/, /kɜːɹˈɪk.juː.lə/[1]
  • US: /kəˈɹɪkjəlɚ/, /kɚˈɪkjəlɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English curriculum + -ar,[2][3][4] originally on Latin curriculum (“a running, course; a fast chariot”) itself, before the English noun was in use.[5][6] The Latin noun is from currō (“to run”), from Proto-Indo-European *kers- (“to run”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Relating to driving or to carriages: 1798, in the Spirit of the Public Journals.[5][6]

Semantic evolution

The first sense came from the Latin meaning "racing chariot", the source also of curricle, a light two-wheeled carriage;[5][6] the Shorter Oxford calls it rare.[3] The modern sense, relating to a course of study, follows the English noun curriculum, used of a fixed course of study from 1824.[6] Etymonline dates it to 1881,[6] while the OED's first example is from the Century Dictionary Supplement of 1909 and marks the sense as American in origin;[5] Merriam-Webster also dates it to about 1909.[2] The compound extracurricular is older, from 1885.[5]

Timeline

  • 1798 – relating to driving or carriages.[5][6]
  • 1881 – relating to a course of study.[6] The OED and Merriam-Webster date this sense to 1909.[5][2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Relating to a curriculum or to courses of study: curricular changes in the science department.[2][7][5]
  2. (rare) Relating to driving or to carriages.[5][3][4]

Word family

  • precurricular
  • extracurricular
  • cocurricular

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ The Chambers Dictionary (2014), 13th ed., Edinburgh: Chambers
Cite this entry

“Curricular.” Etymologically, 2 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/curricular. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

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