Online Etymology Dictionary

holy: O.E. halig "holy," from P.Gmc. *khailagas (cf. O.N. heilagr, Ger. heilig, Goth. hailags "holy"), adopted at conversion for L. sanctus. Primary (pre-Christian) meaning is not impossible to determine, but it was probably "that must be preserved whole or intact, that cannot be transgressed or violated," and connected with O.E. hal (see health) and O.H.G. heil "health, happiness, good luck" (source of the Ger. salutation heil). Use of Holy Land for "western Palestine" dates to late 13c. Holy water was in O.E. Holy smoke (1889), holy mackerel (1903), etc., all euphemisms for holy Christ. Phrase holier-than-thou in reference to supercilious sanctimony first recorded 1912 in writings of Theodore Dreiser.
Kaddish: "doxology of the Jewish ritual," 1613, from Aramaic qaddish "holy, holy one," from stem of q'dhash "was holy," ithqaddash "was sanctified," related to Heb. qadhash "was holy," qadhosh "holy." According to Kline, the name probably is from the second word of the text veyithqaddash "and sanctified be."
hallow: O.E. halgian "to make holy, to honor as holy," related to halig "holy," from P.Gmc. *khailig (cf. O.S. helagon, M.Du. heligen, O.N. helga; see health). Used in Christian translations to render L. sanctificare.
sanctify: 1390, seintefie "to consecrate," from O.Fr. saintifier (12c.), from L.L. sanctificare "to make holy," from sanctus "holy" (see saint) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Form altered to conform with Latin. Meaning "to render holy or legitimate by religious sanction" is from 1402; transf. sense of "to render worthy of respect" is from 1606.
sanctum: 1577, from L. sanctum "a holy place," as in L.L. sanctum sanctorum "holy of holies" (from Gk. to hagion ton hagion, from Heb. qodesh haqqodashim), from neut. of sanctus "holy" (see saint). In Eng., sanctum sanctorum attested from c.1400; sense of "a person's private retreat" is from 1706.
Good Friday: late 13c., from good in sense of "holy" (e.g. the good book "the Bible," 1896), also, esp. of holy days or seasons observed by the church (early 15c.); it was also applied to Christmas and Shrove Tuesday.
sacre bleu: stereotypical Fr. oath, 1869, from Fr. sacré bleu, lit. "holy blue," a euphemism for sacré Dieu (1768), "holy God."
sanctuary: c.1340, "building set apart for holy worship," from Anglo-Fr. sentuarie, from O.Fr. sainctuarie, from L.L. sanctuarium "a sacred place, shrine" (especially the Hebrew Holy of Holies; see sanctum), also "a private room," from L. sanctus "holy" (see saint). By medieval Church law, fugitives or debtors enjoyed immunity from arrest in churches, hence transf. sense of "immunity from punishment" (c.1380). General (non-ecclesiastical) sense of "place of refuge or protection" is attested from 1568; as "land set aside for wild plants or animals to breed and live" it is recorded from 1879. Under English law, one claiming the right of sanctuary had 40 days to confess and accept permanent banishment. This was abolished in Britain 1625 in criminal cases, 1696, 1722 in civil cases.
halibut: 1396, from hali "holy" + butte "flatfish;" supposedly so called from its being eaten on holy days (cf. cognate Du. heilbot, Low Ger. heilbutt, Swed. helgeflundra, Dan. helleflynder). The second element is a general Gmc. name applied to various kinds of flat fishes; cf. O.Swed. but "flatfish," M.E. butt (c.1300), perhaps ult. from PIE *bhauh- "to strike."
Jerome: masc. proper name, from Fr. Jérome, from L.L. Hieronymus, from Gk. Hieronymos, lit. "holy name," from hieros "holy" + onyma, dialectal form of onoma "name" (see name).
sangrail: "the Holy Grail," c.1450, from O.Fr. Saint Graal, lit. "Holy Grail" (see saint + grail).
sacred: c.1300, from pp. of obsolete verb sacren "to make holy" (early 13c.), from O.Fr. sacrer (12c.), from L. sacrare "to make sacred, consecrate," from sacer (gen. sacri) "sacred, dedicated, holy, accursed," from O.L. saceres, which Tucker connects to base *saq- "bind, restrict, enclose, protect," explaining that "words for both 'oath' & 'curse' are regularly words of 'binding.' " But Buck merely groups it with Oscan sakrim, Umbrian sacra and calls it "a distinctive Italic group, without any clear outside connections." Nasalized form is sancire "make sacred, confirm, ratify, ordain." Sacred cow "object of Hindu veneration," is from 1891; figurative sense is first recorded 1910, from Western views of Hinduism.
iron: O.E. isærn (with M.E. rhotacism of -s-), from P.Gmc. *isarnan (cf. O.S. isarn, O.N. isarn, M.Du. iser, O.H.G. isarn, Ger. Eisen) "holy metal" or "strong metal" (in contrast to softer bronze) probably an early borrowing of Celt. *isarnon (cf. O.Ir. iarn, Welsh haiarn), from PIE *is-(e)ro- "powerful, holy," from PIE *eis "strong" (cf. Skt. isirah "vigorous, strong," Gk. ieros "strong"). The verb meaning "press clothes" (with a heated flat-iron) is first recorded 1670s; ironing board is from 1843.
"Right so as whil that Iren is hoot men sholden smyte." [Chaucer, c.1386]
To have (too) many irons in the fire "to be doing too much at once" is from 1540s. Iron lung "artificial respiration tank" is from 1932.
jihad: 1869, from Ar., usually translated as "holy war," lit. "struggle, contest, effort," from inf. of jahada "he waged war, he applied himself to." Used for any doctrinal crusade since c.1880.
Rasputin: acquired name (Rus., lit. "debauchee") of Grigory Yefimovich Novykh (c.1872-1916), mystic and faith healer who held sway over court of Nicholas II of Russia. His nickname is from his doctrine of "rebirth through sin," that true holy communion must be proceeded by immersion in sin. His name used figuratively in Eng. from 1937 for anyone felt to have an insidious and corrupting influence.
Bible: early 14c., from Anglo-L. biblia, from M.L./L.L. biblia (neuter plural interpreted as fem. sing.), in phrase biblia sacra "holy books," from Gk. ta biblia to hagia "the holy books," from biblion "paper, scroll," the ordinary word for "book," originally a dim. of byblos "Egyptian papyrus," possibly so called from the name of the Phoenician port from which Egyptian papyrus was exported to Greece. The port's name is a Gk. corruption of Phoenician Gebhal (modern Jbeil, Lebanon), said to mean lit. "frontier town" (cf. Heb. gebhul "frontier, boundary," Arabic jabal "mountain"). The Christian scripture was refered to in Gk. as Ta Biblia as early as c.223. Bible replaced O.E. biblioðece "the Scriptures," from Gk. bibliotheke, lit. "book-repository" (from biblion + theke "case, chest, sheath"), used of the Bible by Jerome and the common L. word for it until Biblia began to displace it 9c. Figurative sense of "any authoritative book" is from 1804. Bible Belt first attested 1926, reputedly coined by H.L. Mencken.
Sanctus: late 14c., from L., initial word of the "angelic hymn" (Isa. vi:3), concluding the preface of the Eucharist, lit. "holy" (see saint). It renders Heb. qadhosh in the hymn.
Olga: fem. proper name, from Rus., probably from Norse Helga, lit. "holy" (see health). The masc. form is Oleg.
holiness: O.E. halignis (see holy). As title of the Pope, it translates L. sanctitas (until c.600 also applied to bishops).
simony: early 13c., "the buying or selling of sacred things," from O.Fr. simonie, from L.L. simonia, from Simon Magus, the Samaritan magician who was rebuked by Peter when he tried to buy the power of confering the Holy Spirit (Acts viii:18-20).
holiday: O.E. haligdæg, from halig "holy" + dæg "day;" in 14c. meaning both "religious festival" and "day of recreation," but pronunciation and sense diverged 16c.
Penzance: place in Cornwall, Pensans "Holy Headland" (1284), from Cornish penn "head" + sans.
maharishi: Hindu sage or holy man, 1785, from Skt., from maha "great" (see maharajah) + rishi "inspired sage." In general use, a title for a popular spiritual leader.
siddha: in Indian religion, "one who has attained perfection and bliss," 1846, from Skt. siddhah "accomplished, achieved, successful, possessing supernatural power, sorcerer, saint," related to sidhyati "reaches his goal, succeeds," sadhuh "right, skilled, excellent, a holy man."
Maximilian: masc. proper name, from L. Maximus and Aemilianus, both proper names. According to Camden, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III (1415-93) coined the name and gave it to his son in hopes the boy would grow up to have the virtues of Fabius Maximus and Scipio Aemilianus.
Weimar (adj.): in ref. to the pre-1933 democratic government of Germany, 1932, from name of city in Thuringia where Ger. constitution was drawn up in 1919. The place name is a compound of O.H.G. wih "holy" + mari "lake." Cf. also Weimaraner, dog breed, 1943, originally bred as a hunting dog in the Weimar region.
gymnosophist: c.1400, from Gk. gymnosophistai, from gymnos "naked" + sophistes "sophist" (see sophist). Ancient Hindu holy men whose self-denial extended to clothes; they were known to the Greeks through the reports of Alexander the Great's soldiers.
halo: 1563, from L. halo (acc.), from Gk. halos "disk of the sun or moon, ring of light around the sun or moon" (also "threshing floor" and "disk of a shield"), of unknown origin. Sense of "light around the head of a holy person or deity" first recorded 1646.
desecrate: 1674, formed from de- "do the opposite of" + (con)secrate. O.Fr. had dessacrer "to profane," and there is a similar formation in It.; but L. desecrare meant "to make holy," with de- in this case having a completive sense.
ampoule: "small bottle or flask," esp. one used for holy liquids, c.1200, from O.Fr. ampole, from L. ampulla "small globular flask or bottle," of uncertain origin, perhaps a contracted form of amphora.
ordination: 1432, "the act of conferring holy orders," from M.Fr. ordinacion (12c.), from L. ordinationem (nom. ordinatio) "a setting in order, ordinance," from ordinatus, pp. of ordinare "arrange" (see ordain).
sanctity: c.1394, from O.Fr. sanctité, from L. sanctitatem (nom. sanctitas) "holiness, sacredness," from sanctus "holy" (see saint).
hollyhock: c.1265, holihoc, from holi "holy" + hokke "mallow," from O.E. hocc, of unknown origin. The first element is probably of hagiological origin; another early name for the plant was caulis Sancti Cuthberti "St. Cuthbert's cole."
Sufi: member of a Muslim mystical order, 1653 (earlier Sufian, 1585), from Arabic sufi, lit. "man of wool" (i.e., "man wearing woolen garments"), from suf "wool." So-called from the habit of "putting on the holy garment" (labs-as-suf) to devote oneself to mysticism.
consecrate: late 14c., from L. consecratus, pp. of consecrare "to make holy, devote," from com- "together" + sacrare (see sacred).
pica (1): "size of type of about six lines to the inch" (12 point), 1588, probably from M.L. pica, name of a book of rules in Church of England for determining holy days (1497, in Anglo-L.), probably from L. pica "magpie;" the book so called perhaps from the color and the "pied" look of the old type on close-printed pages. The type size was that generally used to print ordinals.
Agnes: fem. proper name, 1160, from O.Fr., from Gk. Hagne "pure, chaste," from fem. of hagnos "holy." St. Agnes, martyred 303 C.E., is patron saint of young girls, hence the folk connection of St. Agnes' Eve (Jan. 20-21) with love divinations. In M.E., frequently as Annis, Annys. In U.S., among the top 50 names for girls born between 1887 and 1919.
hagiology: "study of saints' lives," 1807, from Gk. hagios "holy" + logia "study." First element probably cognate with Gk. agnos "chaste," Skt. yajati "reveres (a god) with sacrifices, worships," O.Pers. ayadana "temple." Hagiographical is attested from 1585.
proctor: late 14c., contraction of procurator (late 13c.), "official agent of a church or holy order," from O.Fr. procuratour (13c.), from L. procuratorem "manager, agent, deputy," from procurare (see procure).
asperges: c.1560, from L. asperges, 2nd person sing. fut. indicative of aspergere, from ad "to" + spargere "to sprinkle" (see sparse). The word is taken from the phrase Asperges me, Domine, hyssopo et mundabor, from Psalm 51 (Vulgate), sung during the rite of sprinkling a congregation with holy water.
fakir: 1609, from Arabic faqir "a poor man," from faqura "he was poor." Term for Muslim holy man who lived by begging, misapplied in 19c. Eng. (possibly under influence of faker) to Hindu ascetics. Arabic plural form fuqara may have led to variant early Eng. forms such as fuckiere (1638).
unholy: O.E. unhalig, "impious, profane, wicked," from un- (1) "not" + halig (see holy). Cf. M.Du. onheilich, O.N. uheilagr, Dan. unhellig, Swed. ohelig. In ref. to actions, it is attested from 1382. Colloquial sense of "awful, dreadful" is recorded from 1842.
ordain: late 13c., "to appoint or admit to the ministry of the Church," from stem of O.Fr. ordener, from L. ordinare "put in order, arrange, dispose, appoint," from ordo (gen. ordinis) "order." The notion is "to confer holy orders upon" (see order). Meaning "to decree, enact" is from c.1300; sense of "to set (something) that will continue in a certain order" is from early 14c.
ire: c.1300, from O.Fr. ire (11c.), from L. ira "anger, wrath, rage," from PIE base *eis-, forming various words denoting "passion" cf. Gk. hieros "filled with the divine, holy," oistros "gadfly," originally "thing causing madness;" Skt. esati "drives on," yasati "boils;" Avestan aesma "anger").
Jerusalem: holy city in Palestine, from Gk. Hierousalem, from Heb. Yerushalayim, lit. "foundation of peace," from base of yarah "he threw, cast" + shalom "peace." Jerusalem "artichoke" is folk etymology of It. girasole "sunflower."
health: O.E. hælþ "wholeness, a being whole, sound or well," from PIE *kailo- "whole, uninjured, of good omen" (cf. O.E. hal "hale, whole;" O.N. heill "healthy;" O.E. halig, O.N. helge "holy, sacred;" O.E. hælan "to heal"). Healthy is first attested 1552.
siege: early 13c., "a seat" (as in Siege Perilous, the vacant seat at Arthur's Round Table, to be occupied safely only by the knight destined to find the Holy Grail, c.1230), from O.Fr. sege "seat, throne," from V.L. *sedicum "seat," from L. sedere "sit" (see sedentary). The military sense is attested from c.1300; the notion is of an army "sitting down" before a fortress.
inspiration: c.1300, "immediate influence of God or a god," especially that under which the holy books were written, from O.Fr. inspiration, from L.L. inspirationem (nom. inspiratio), from L. inspiratus, pp. of inspirare "inspire, inflame, blow into," from in-"in" + spirare "to breathe" (see spirit).
fir: c.1300; O.E. had furhwudu "pine wood," but the modern word is more likely from O.N. fyri- "fir" or O.Dan. fyr, all from P.Gmc. *furkhon (cf. O.H.G. foraha, Ger. Föhre "fir"), from PIE base *perkos, originally "oak" (cf. Skt. paraktah "the holy fig tree," Hind. pargai "the evergreen oak," L. quercus "oak," Lombard. fereha "a kind of oak").
sanctimonious: c.1600 (in "Measure for Measure," with the disparaging sense), from sanctimony "holiness of life and character" (1530s), from M.Fr. sanctimonie, from L. sanctimonia "holiness, virtuousness," from sanctus "holy" (see saint). The un-ironic, literal sense was used occasionally in English from c.1600 to c.1800.