1580s, Latin form of Greek lykeion, name of a grove or garden with covered walks near Athens where Aristotle taught, from neuter of Lykeios "wolf-slayer," an epithet of Apollo, whose temple was nearby, from lykos "wolf." Hence lycée, name given in France to state-run secondary schools. In England, early 19c., lyceum was the name taken by a number of literary societies; in U.S., after c. 1820, it was the name of institutes that sponsored popular lectures in science and literature.
