Terminology of Antenna and Aerial

Terminology of Antenna and Aerial

Electronic symbol for an antenna

The word “ antenna” comes from a part of latin military ship.

The words antenna and aerial are used interchangeably. Occasionally the equivalent term “aerial” is used to specifically mean an elevated wire antenna. The origin of the word antenna relative to wireless apparatus is attributed to Italian radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi. In the summer of 1895, Marconi began testing his wireless system outdoors on his father’s estate near Bologna and soon began to experiment with long wire “aerials” suspended from a pole. In Italian a tent pole is known as l’antenna centrale, and the pole with the wire was simply called l’antenna. Until then wireless radiating transmitting and receiving elements were known simply as “terminals”. Because of his prominence, Marconi’s use of the word antenna spread among wireless researchers and enthusiasts, and later to the general public.

Antenna may refer broadly to an entire assembly including support structure, enclosure (if any), etc., in addition to the actual functional components. A receiving antenna may include not only the passive metal receiving elements, but also an integrated preamplifier or mixer, especially at and above microwave frequencies.

[from wikipedia]