zelez

Zelez is not a standard English term. In linguistic and encyclopedic contexts it is used as an anglicized, diacritic-free rendering of the Slavic root for iron. The native spellings across major Slavic languages differ: železo in Czech and Slovak, železo in Slovene, żelazo in Polish, железо in Russian, залізо in Ukrainian, and željezo in Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian. The form without diacritics may appear in transliterations or historical texts.

These forms share a common meaning: iron, the metallic element. The root also underlies many related terms for iron- or steel-related concepts in Slavic languages. For example, in Czech and Slovak, the word železo denotes iron, while compounds such as železářství refer to hardware or ironmongery. Similar compound formations exist in other Slavic languages, contributing to a family of vocabulary around iron and ironworking.

In scientific and general discourse, the metal is typically referred to by the English word iron, with the chemical symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron has been central to toolmaking, construction, and industry throughout human history, and it remains a core material in modern engineering and manufacturing.

Because zelez is primarily a linguistic or transliteration form, it is unlikely to be used as a standalone term outside of discussions about Slavic language vocabulary or etymology. See also iron, metallurgy, Slavic languages.