Origins of the word ‘graffiti’

Graffiti is a style of art made on both public and private surfaces, prevalent in low income areas of cities, taking the form o f drawings, words, and art. Graffiti art is often considered vandalism because most of the time, the property’s owner is not consulted about the art administration. Graffitti art dates back to ancient classical Greece and the Roman Empire. The word Graffiti is a plural word derived from “graffito”, which refers to works of art created by scratching a design on a surface. The word sgraffito is also related to the word Graffiti in which it conveys a method of scratching through a layer of paint in order to reveal another pigmented layer below. All the words mentioned above are originally from the Italian language, and the main roots are “graffiato” which means “to scratch” and this word is from the Greek word “graphein” which means “to write”. It is still not clear when exactly the word graffiti was first used to distinguish an art form.