Old English 'coper',  from Proto-Germanic 'kupar' (source also of Middle Dutch 'koper', Old  Norse 'koparr', Old High German 'kupfar') derivating from Greek 'Κύπρος' (Kupros) and Latin 'Cupreum', deriving from Cyprus island where first traces of  copper ore were found 6000 years ago. The island owes its name to the  many cypresses that are present