Origin of the Word "Photography" (Etymological Lie #1)

The word "photography" is derived from the French word "faux," the latin word "toga" and the greek word "graph."

Faux means "false" or "fake," because a photograph is a 2-dimensional representation of a person or thing, rather than an actual person or thing.

In the early days of photography, persons being photographed wore their best clothes, or "togs (from the latin "toga".)

Finally, the creation of a photograph involved "writing" (from the greek "graph") the image to a plate or to paper. So, literally, photograph comes from faux + tog + graph; to write a false image of a person in their best clothes.

Some etymologists who believe the word's origins lie elsewhere have used the argument that many early photos are actually of nudes, primarily women. Therefore, no "togs" were involved. However, this is easily explained by the fact that a "sexy" woman is often referred to as a "fox" or described as "foxy." This was originally a pun from the word "faux" to designate that the woman had posed (or would most likely be willing to pose) nude for a photograph. Thus, a code word used between gentlemen photographers to designate a nude model has passed into the popular vernacular as a term for any attractive woman.