Historical and Cultural References
- Etymologically, the English word “sapphire” derives from Latin sapphirus, sappirus from Greek σαπφειρος (sappheiros) from Hebrew סַפִּיר (sappir) from Old Iranian sani-prijam, from Sanskrit, ' 'Shanipriya' ' (शनिप्रिय), from "shani" (शनि) meaning "Saturn" and "priya" (प्रिय), dear, i.e. literally “dear to Saturn”.
- The Greek term for sapphire quite likely was misapplied, and instead used to refer to lapis lazuli.
- During the Medieval Ages, European lapidaries came to refer to blue corundum crystal by its “sapphire-blue” color, whence the modern name for “sapphire”.
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