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Several varieties of the mineral beryl are valued as gemstones: aquamarine (pale blue-green); emerald (deep green); heliodor (golden yellow); and morganite (pink). Beryl consists of a silicate of beryllium and aluminum of great hardness, and is a commercial source of beryllium. Before 1925 beryl was used only as a gemstone, but since then many important uses have been found for beryllium (in nuclear reactors, space vehicles, and X-ray tubes). No large deposits have been found, and most production is a by-product of the mining of feldspar and mica. Brazil is a major producer; others producers include Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, and the USA.

Examples of beryl in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Pom Pom earrings of intriguingly pale green beryl surrounded by light sapphires. — Stellene Volandes, Town & Country, 14 Mar. 2019 Among the new creations is the Hopi hummingbird ring in diamonds and yellow sapphires with emerald eyes and a large beryl. — Vogue, 26 Jan. 2018

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History and Etymology for beryl

Middle English beril, berille "beryl, a kind of crystal," borrowed from Anglo-French beril, borrowed from Latin bēryllus, borrowed from Greek bḗryllos, back-formation from bērýllion "beryl," borrowed from Prakrit veruḷiya, metathesized form of Pali veḷuriya , perhaps from Vēḷur, Vēḷūr (modern Belur) town in Karnataka, southern India

Note: For the Indo-Aryan etymology, see Alfred Master, "Indo-Aryan and Dravidian," Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, vol. 11, no. 2 (1944), pp. 304-07.

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