Birthdates

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The dates marking the annual anniversaries of individuals' births
2. The specific days on which people celebrate their entry into the world each year
3. The recorded occasions that signify the ages of individuals as they grow older

Etymology: "Birthdates" is the plural of "birthdate", a compound formed from "birth" and "date". The first element is the Old English-rooted "birth," which came into English from Old Norse "byrth," while "date" traces back through Old French and Medieval Latin to the Greek "didonai" ("to give"), via the Latin "data," meaning "given" (the date was originally a "given" point in time, as in a fixed day written on a document). Because the plural form refers to many individuals' separate days of birth, it names a whole set of calendar dates rather than a single one. The compound itself is a straightforward modern formation, and its meaning follows directly from its two parts: the date on which someone was born.

Synonyms: birthdays