'Papyrus' was likely linked to royal monopoly on its production — the ancestor of the word 'paper.'
A tall aquatic plant of the sedge family native to the Nile region, or the writing material prepared from the pith of this plant by ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.
From Latin 'papȳrus,' borrowed from Greek 'pápȳros' (πάπυρος), which is itself almost certainly borrowed from an Egyptian word. The Egyptian source is debated but may be related to a term meaning 'of the pharaoh' or 'royal,' reflecting the crown's monopoly on papyrus production, or from Coptic 'papuro' (those of the king). The word entered English in the fourteenth century
Despite giving us the word 'paper,' papyrus and paper are completely different materials made by completely different processes. Papyrus is made by layering strips of plant pith; paper is made by pulping plant fibers into a slurry and pressing them into sheets. The Chinese invented true
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