(Re)constructions of Etymology of the Term ‘Electricity’ in French German and Modern Greek Textbooks of Physics of 18th–19th Centuries

Abstract

The different and contrasting versions of the etymology of the term ‘electricity’ in Modern Greek textbooks of Physics of the 18th and 19th century, which are influenced by French and German textbooks, are not mere (re)constructions that serve the didactic purposes and objectives of their authors. They are (in)directly related to the social and cultural framework within and through which Physics were taught at the time, and this is something to be considered seriously by active instructors of Physics.