silicon English · revision 10576

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=coinage|attested=1817|origins=en silica}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈsɪl.ɪ.kən/, US also /ˈsɪl.ɪ.kɑːn/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It was coined in 1817 by the British chemist Thomas Thomson, in his System of Chemistry,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) from [[silica]], from which it was isolated, with the ending of [[carbon]] and [[boron]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) The NODE describes it as an alteration of earlier silicium, from Latin silex, flint.^(NODE 1998)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The non-metallic element: 1817.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ ''Silicon carbide'' is recorded from 1893.^(OED 1989) The ''silicon chip'' is attested from 1965,^(Etymonline) and ''Silicon Valley'', for the Santa Clara Valley near San Francisco, where makers of silicon chips are concentrated, by 1974.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1817 – silicon.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1893 – silicon carbide.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1965 – silicon chip.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A non-metallic [[element]] found widely in the Earth's crust in [[sand]], [[quartz]] and other minerals, used in [[transistor|alt=transistors]], solar cells and alloys.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[ferrosilicon]]

+ * [[organosilicon]]

+ * [[silicide]]

+ * [[silicon nitride]]

+ * [[silicon carbide]]

+ * [[silicon dioxide]]

+ * [[silicon tetrachloride]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[silane]]

+ * [[silex]]

+ * [[silica]]

+ * [[silicate]]

+ * [[siliceous]]

+ * [[silicic]]

+ * [[siliciferous]]

+ * [[silicify]]

+ * [[silicone]]

+ * [[silicosis]]

+ * [[carbon]]

+ * [[boron]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}