prosthesis

/ˈprɒs.θɪ.sɪs/·noun·1553 (rhetorical sense); c. 1706 (medical sense)·Established

Origin

From Greek prósthesis (an addition, an attachment), from pros- (to, towards) + tithenai (to place, to put), from PIE *dʰeh₁- (to set, to place).‌‌‌‍‍‌‌‍‌‌‍‌‍‍‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‌‍‌ Originally a grammatical term for the addition of a letter.

Definition

An artificial body part, such as a limb, eye, or tooth, used to replace a missing or impaired part o‌‌‌‍‍‌‌‍‌‌‍‌‍‍‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‌‍‌f the body.

Did you know?

The PIE root *dʰeh₁- (to put, to place) connects 'prosthesis' to both 'do' and 'fact.' In Latin it became 'facere' (to make, to do), producing 'fact,' 'factory,' 'affair,' 'feature,' and 'fashion.' In Greek it became 'tithenai' (to place), producing 'thesis,' 'synthesis,' 'hypothesis,' and 'prosthesis.' In English it became 'do' and 'deed.' The artificial limb and the everyday verb 'to do' share the same six-thousand-year-old root.

Etymology

Greek16th century (medical use 19th century)well-attested

From Greek 'prosthesis' (πρόσθεσις, an addition, a putting to), from 'prostithenai' (προστιθέναι, to put to, to add, to place in addition), a compound of 'pros' (πρός, to, toward, in addition to) + 'tithenai' (τιθέναι, to place, to put), from PIE *dʰeh₁- (to put, to place, to set). The PIE root *dʰeh₁- is one of the most productive in Indo-European, producing Latin 'facere' (to do, to make), Greek 'tithenai' (to place), and English 'do.' A prosthesis is literally something added — placed in addition to what is there — a supplement that completes. Key roots: pros (πρός) (Greek: "to, toward, in addition to"), tithenai (τιθέναι) (Greek: "to place, to put, to set"), *dʰeh₁- (Greek: "to put, to place, to set").

Ancient Roots

pros (πρός) (Greek: “to, toward, in addition to”)tithenai (τιθέναι) (Greek: “to place, to put, to set”)*dʰeh₁- (Greek: “to put, to place, to set”)

This Word in Other Languages

thesis(English (Greek thesis, a placing, a proposition))hypothesis(English (Greek hypo + thesis, a placing under))synthesis(English (Greek syn + thesis, a placing together))antithesis(English (Greek anti + thesis, a placing against))theme(English (from Greek thema, something placed, a topic))do(English (from Old English don, PIE *dʰeh₁-))fact(English (from Latin factum, from facere, PIE *dʰeh₁-))

Prosthesis traces back to Greek pros (πρός), meaning "to, toward, in addition to", with related forms in Greek tithenai (τιθέναι) ("to place, to put, to set"), Greek *dʰeh₁- ("to put, to place, to set"). Across languages it shares form or sense with English (Greek thesis, a placing, a proposition) thesis, English (Greek hypo + thesis, a placing under) hypothesis, English (Greek syn + thesis, a placing together) synthesis and English (Greek anti + thesis, a placing against) antithesis among others, evidence of a shared etymological family.

Background

Origins

The word 'prosthesis' carries within it one of the most productive roots in Indo-European linguistic‌‌‌‍‍‌‌‍‌‌‍‌‍‍‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‌‍‌s — PIE *dʰeh₁- (to put, to set, to place), the ancestor of Greek 'tithenai,' Latin 'facere,' and English 'do.' A prosthesis is, at its etymological core, something placed in addition, something added to complete what is missing. The Greek compound 'prostithenai' (to put to, to add) joined 'pros' (toward, in addition to) with 'tithenai' (to place), and its noun 'prosthesis' originally named any kind of addition in a general sense.

The word's earliest English appearances were in rhetoric, not medicine. In Greek rhetorical theory, 'prosthesis' named the addition of a syllable or letter to the beginning of a word — a linguistic supplement, analogous to the physical one. This grammatical sense was borrowed into Latin and thence into early modern English. The medical sense — an artificial substitute for a missing body part — developed through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as surgical and prosthetic technology advanced following the amputations made necessary by modern warfare.

The Greek 'tithenai' (τιθέναι, to place, to put) from *dʰeh₁- produced an extraordinary family of words in English, all built on the suffix '-thesis' (a placing). 'Thesis' (something placed, a proposition put forward) gives 'antithesis' (a placing against), 'synthesis' (a placing together), 'hypothesis' (a placing under, a foundational assumption), 'parenthesis' (a placing in beside, an insertion), 'epithet' (placed upon, a descriptive name), and 'theme' (from 'thema,' something placed, a topic). Every time one formulates a thesis, hypothesizes, or opens a parenthesis, one is using the same PIE root as the surgeon who fits a prosthetic limb.

Proto-Indo-European Roots

In Latin, *dʰeh₁- became 'facere' (to make, to do), one of the most productive verbs in the language. English inherited from it: 'fact' (something made/done), 'factory,' 'manufacture,' 'satisfy,' 'affair,' 'feature,' 'fashion,' 'deficit,' 'perfect,' 'infect,' 'effect,' 'affect,' 'office,' 'sacrifice,' and hundreds more. In the Germanic branch, *dʰeh₁- produced Old English 'dōn' (to do), Modern English 'do' and 'deed.' The Sanskrit cognate is 'dhā-' (to place).

The history of physical prostheses is ancient. Archaeological evidence of prosthetic toes in ancient Egypt dates to around 950 BCE. Roman soldiers used iron hands. Renaissance craftsmen built articulated metal hands for injured knights — the most famous being the iron hand of Götz von Berlichingen (1480–1562), immortalized by Goethe. Modern prosthetics, powered by myoelectric sensors and advanced materials, represent the most sophisticated realization of what the Greek word literally promised: something placed in addition, completing the body.

The word 'prosthetics' (the branch of medicine dealing with prostheses) and the adjective 'prosthetic' both derive from the same Greek root, extending the word family into the clinical vocabulary of rehabilitation medicine. In each case, the meaning is the same as it was in ancient Greek rhetoric: an addition, a supplement, something placed in to complete what was interrupted.

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