*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of Petra

Etymology tree Pre-Greekder.? Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra)der. English Petra Ultimately from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”).

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
name

An ancient city and archaeological site in Jordan. · An ancient Hellenistic city and former bishopric in Roman Egypt; in full, Petra in Aegypto. · A medieval fortified town in Lazica, in the modern country of Georgia; modern Tsikhisdziri. · An ancient lost town in Corinthia.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Pre-Greekder.? Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra)der. English Petra Ultimately from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

This page abbreviates 9 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "grc:πέτρα<t:rock>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nPre-Greekder.?\nAncient Greek πέτρα (pétra)der.\nEnglish Petra\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"gloss\" : \"rock\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"lang_name\" : \"Pre-Greek\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang\" : \"qsb-grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"πέτρα\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"Petra\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"Petra\">"
    },
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        "2": "grc",
        "3": "πέτρα",
        "t": "rock"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”)"
    },
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        "3": "grc:πέτρα<t:rock>",
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      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nPre-Greekder.?\nAncient Greek πέτρα (pétra)der.\nEnglish Petra"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
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    ],
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  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "An ancient city and archaeological site in Jordan.",
        "An ancient Hellenistic city and former bishopric in Roman Egypt; in full, Petra in Aegypto.",
        "A medieval fortified town in Lazica, in the modern country of Georgia; modern Tsikhisdziri.",
        "An ancient lost town in Corinthia."
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
name

A female given name from Ancient Greek, masculine equivalent Peter; variant form Peta.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Pre-Greekder.? Ancient Greek πέτρᾱ (pétrā)bor. Late Latin petrader. English Petra Feminine form of Peter. Derived from petra (“stone”), from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”). The name came into regular use in the 19th century.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "args": {
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    },
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        "3": "πέτρα",
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      },
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    },
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        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nPre-Greekder.?\nAncient Greek πέτρᾱ (pétrā)bor.\nLate Latin petrader.\nEnglish Petra"
    }
  ],
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    ],
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  "lexical": [
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      "pos": "name",
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        "A female given name from Ancient Greek, masculine equivalent Peter; variant form Peta."
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Petra →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-UGV0cmE