lapis lazuli

[lap-is laz-oo-lee, -lahy, laz-yoo-, lazh-oo-]

noun

1. a deep-blue mineral composed mainly of lazurite with smaller quantities of other minerals, used mainly as a gem or as a pigment.

2. a sky-blue color; azure.

lapis lazuli

/ ˈlæpɪs /

noun

1. a brilliant blue variety of the mineral lazurite, used as a gemstone

2. the deep blue colour of lapis lazuli

Word History and Origins

Origin of lapis lazuli¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Medieval Latin, equivalent to Latin lapis “stone” + Medieval Latin lazulī, genitive of lazulum “lapis lazuli”; azure

Word History and Origins

Origin of lapis lazuli¹

C14: from Latin lapis stone + Medieval Latin lazulī, from lazulum, from Arabic lāzaward, from Persian lāzhuward, of obscure origin

Example Sentences

The rare gold band, adorned with spherical lapis lazuli beads, dates back to the reign of King Amenemope, a pharaoh of ancient Egypt's 21st Dynasty who ruled from 993 to 984BC.

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Pigments made of minerals including hematite and rocks like lapis lazuli are ground into nanoparticles and suspended in silica, resembling “melted glass,” as Magaloni describes.

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“And also no lapis lazuli. And absolutely no...,” he continues his message before, screaming, “chicken jockeys!”

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It is made of silver, lapis lazuli, malachite and pink coral.

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Several mineral supply chains have even helped finance repressive military regimes or terrorist groups, like jade and rubies from Burma and lapis lazuli from Afghanistan.

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