Lapis lazuli

Lapis lazuli, also known as just lapis, is one of the stones which have the longest tradition of being considered a gem, with a history stretching back to 5000 BC. Deep blue in color and opaque, this gemstone was highly prized by the pharaohs of the ancient Egypt, as could be seen by its prominent use in many of the treasures recovered from the paranoiac tombs. It is still extremely popular today.

Lapis is a rock and not a mineral because it is made up of from various other minerals. To be a true mineral it would have one constituent only.

The first part of the name is the Latin lapis, meaning stone. The second part, lazuli, is the genitive form of the Medieval Latin lazulum; a loanword adapted from the Arabic word (al-) leeward, which itself a borrowed word from the Persian lazhward. This was originally a place-name, but soon came to mean blue because of its good association with the stone. English azure, Spanish azul, Italian azure also derives from this source. Taken as a whole, lapis lazuli means stone of azure.