The term prostate was initially used in the mid-seventeenth century in a manual of human anatomy as prostata (with the plural form being prostatae). This word originates from Latin prostata and the Ancient Greek prostates, which could be interpreted as “protector” but more literally translates to “one who stands before” (likely in reference to its location at the base of the bladder). The prefix pro- signifies “before” and is derived from Proto-Indo-European per, meaning “forward”; while the root stata comes from histanai, which means “cause to stand” – originating from Proto-Indo-European sta, meaning “stand”. Histanai is also the root of terms like apostate, system, ecstasy, and Anastasia, and according to Google NGram Viewer, the usage of the term prostate reached its peak in 2010.
