The ancient Greeks believed that the precious purple stone called an amethyst had the power to prevent a person from becoming intoxicated. That belief is reflected in the name of this gem, which comes from the Greek prefix a- meaning “not,” and methys, “drunk,” a linguistic relative of English mead. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Amethyst Etymology”
I was looking at an amethyst the other day and I was thinking what a weird word that is, amethyst.
And as I suspected, it comes from a Greek word, amethystos, which literally translates as not intoxicating. The A there means not, and the methus in that Greek word means wine. It’s a relative of English mead.
And the reason is that the amethyst in ancient times was considered to be a stone that would keep you from getting drunk if you drank too much. Did it, actually?
I’m going to try that tonight, and I will get back to you.
Oh, a drunken Martha is something I’ve got to see.
