What is "attic"

Attic \At"tic\, n. [In sense (a) from F. attique, orig. meaning Attic. See Attic, a.]

1. (Arch.)

   1. A low story above the main order or orders of a facade, in the classical styles; -- a term introduced in the 17th century. Hence:

   2. A room or rooms behind that part of the exterior; all the rooms immediately below the roof.

2. An Athenian; an Athenian author.

Attic \At"tic\, a. [L. Atticus, Gr. ?.] Of or pertaining to Attica, in Greece, or to Athens, its principal city; marked by such qualities as were characteristic of the Athenians; classical; refined.

Attic base (Arch.), a peculiar form of molded base for a column or pilaster, described by Vitruvius, applied under the Roman Empire to the Ionic and Corinthian and ``Roman Doric'' orders, and imitated by the architects of the Renaissance.

Attic faith, inviolable faith.

Attic purity, special purity of language.

Attic salt, Attic wit, a poignant, delicate wit, peculiar to the Athenians.

Attic story. See Attic, n.

Attic style, a style pure and elegant.

1590s, "pertaining to Attica," from Latin Atticus, from Greek Attikos "Athenian, of Attica," the region around Athens (see Attica). Attested from 1560s as an architectural term for a type of column base.

"top story under the roof of a house," 1855, shortened from attic storey (1724). The term Attic order in classical architecture meant a small, square decorative column of the type often used in a low story above a building's main facade, a feature associated with the region around Athens (see Attic). The word then was applied by architects to "a low decorative facade above the main story of a building" (1690s in English) to convey a classical heritage where none exists, and it came to mean the space enclosed by such a structure. The modern use is via French attique. "An attic is upright, a garret is in a sloping roof" [Weekley].

n. The space, often unfinished and with sloped walls, directly below the roof in the uppermost part of a house or other building, generally used for storage or habitation.

1. n. floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof; often used for storage [syn: loft, garret]

2. the dialect of Ancient Greek spoken and written in Attica and Athens [syn: Classical Greek]

3. informal terms for a human head [syn: bean, bonce, noodle, noggin, dome]

4. (architecture) a low wall at the top of the entablature; hides the roof

An attic is an area under the roof of a house.

Attic may also refer to:

Attic is a Backup system written mostly in Python (some performance critical parts are implemented in C and Cython).

An attic or a loft is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building (also called garret or sky parlor). As attics fill the space between the ceiling of the top floor of a building and the slanted roof, they are known for being awkwardly shaped spaces with exposed rafters and difficult-to-reach corners.

While some attics are converted into bedrooms or home offices, complete with windows and staircases, most attics remain difficult to access (usually by a loft hatch and ladder), and are generally used for storage.

Attics can also help control temperature in a house by providing a large mass of slowly moving air. Hot air rising from lower floors of a building often gets retained in the attic, further compounding their reputation as inhospitable environments. However, in recent years many attics have been insulated to help decrease heating costs since on average, uninsulated attics account for 15% of the total energy loss in an average house.