Story = historia

Posted by ESC on September 27, 2003

In Reply to: Floor? Story? posted by Cheryl on September 27, 2003

: Why do we refer to multi-floor buildings as stories?

: I don't know if this is the right forum to ask this quiestion, but I have tried a few other forums and haven't been able to get an answer? I hope somebody can help!

STORY - "n. floor of a building. Before 1354, borrowed from Anglo-Latin 'historia' picture, floor of a building, from Latin 'historia'.perhaps so called because the front of buildings in the Middle Ages often were decorated with rows of painted windows." The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology by Robert K. Barnhart (HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 1995).

From Merriam-Webster online at www.merriam-webster.com/
Main Entry: 3story
Variant(s): also sto.rey /'stOr-E, 'stor-E/
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural stories also storeys
Etymology: Middle English storie, from Medieval Latin historia picture, story of a building, from Latin, history, tale; probably from pictures adorning the windows of medieval buildings
Date: 14th century
1 a : the space in a building between two adjacent floor levels or between a floor and the roof b : a set of rooms in such a space c : a unit of measure equal to the height of the story of a building
2 : a horizontal division of a building's exterior not necessarily corresponding exactly with the stories within

• Story = historia masakim 27/September/03
  • Tall storeys Henry 29/September/03