> the word brutal...again predating concrete. I don't necessarily disagree with your main point — I don't know enough to say either way — but that statement is

> the word brutal...again predating concrete. I don't necessarily disagree with your main point — I don't know enough to say either way — but that statement isn't true unless I'm misunderstanding something. Concrete was used extensively by the Romans, and also before them. The earliest citations in the OED for "brutal" are 16th century (in English). (It also says "Compare French brutal, 16th cent.") It is derived from a Latin word, but even then it likely doesn't predate concrete.