Origin of The Term
Stalactites are first mentioned (though not by name) by the Roman natural historian Pliny in a text which also mentions stalagmites and columns and refers to their creation by the dripping of water. The term "stalactite" was coined in the 17th century by the Danish Physician Ole Worm who created the word from the Greek root stalasso, (σταλάσσω), "to drip".
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