I. ˈärˌkīv, ˈȧˌk- noun
( -s )
Etymology: French & Latin; obsolete French archive (now archives, plural), from Latin archivum, archium, from Greek archeion government house, archeia (plural of archeion ) archives, from archē beginning, first place, government — more at archi-
1.
a. : a place in which public or institutional records (as minutes, correspondence, reports, accounts) are systematically preserved — usually used in plural
b. : a repository for any documents or other materials especially of historical value (as diaries, photographs, private correspondence)
the Trotsky archives at Harvard
— usually used in plural
c. : any repository or collection especially of information
the archives of memory
2. : public or institutional records, historic documents, and other materials that have been preserved — usually used in plural
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
: to file or collect (as records or documents) in an archive or other repository
methods for archiving languages of the world — Linguistic Institute