Editing Calcite (section)

== Etymology ==
Calcite is derived from the German {{lang|de|Calcit}}, a term from the 19th century that came from the Latin word for [[Lime (material)|lime]], {{lang|la|calx}} (genitive {{lang|la|calcis}}) with the suffix ''-ite'' used to name minerals. It is thus a [[Doublet (linguistics)|doublet]] of the word ''[[wikt:chalk|chalk]]''.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=calcite (n.) |encyclopedia=Online Etymology Dictionary|url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/calcite|access-date=6 May 2018|language=en}}</ref>

When applied by [[archaeology|archaeologists]] and stone trade professionals, the term [[alabaster]] is used not just as in geology and mineralogy, where it is reserved for a variety of [[gypsum]]; but also for a similar-looking, [[Transparency and translucency|translucent]] variety of fine-grained banded deposit of calcite.<ref>[http://www.oum.ox.ac.uk/corsi/files/pdf/Alabaster-travertine.pdf ''More about alabaster and travertine''], brief guide explaining the different use of the same terms by geologists, archaeologists, and the stone trade. Oxford University Museum of Natural History, 2012.</ref>