entry
canonical
/kəˈnɒnɪkəl/Conforming to an accepted rule or standard
From Greek via Latin and French canon (Rule).
from Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English canonycal
from Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourceWord Ancestry
from Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English canonycal
from Medieval Latin canonicalis
+1 more sourceA canon was originally just a straight rod — the sort of thing a builder or surveyor would actually hold in his hand. The Greeks called that rod κανών (kanṓn), and then Latin clerics turned it into a metaphor for Church law: the rule you measure everything else against. By the early 1400s, English had canoun, and monks were using it for approved Scripture; by the 1500s, the word had escaped the cloister and started meaning any accepted standard, from doctrine to art to mathematics. That’s why canonical sits in the same family as canonize and canon, while sounding like it ought to be related to cannon — which it isn’t, even though the spelling looks like a medieval prank. The whole thing is basically a measuring stick that wandered into theology and never left.
The Story
A canon was originally just a straight rod — the sort of thing a builder or surveyor would actually hold in his hand. The Greeks called that rod κανών (kanṓn), and then Latin clerics turned it into a metaphor for Church law: the rule you measure everything else against. By the early 1400s, English had canoun, and monks were using it for approved Scripture; by the 1500s, the word had escaped the cloister and started meaning any accepted standard, from doctrine to art to mathematics. That’s why canonical sits in the same family as canonize and canon, while sounding like it ought to be related to cannon — which it isn’t, even though the spelling looks like a medieval prank. The whole thing is basically a measuring stick that wandered into theology and never left.
Kin & Kindred
From 'canon'·Rule; standard; authoritative body of texts
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From '-ical'·Adjective-forming suffix meaning 'pertaining to'
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Etymonline
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia