academ-
(Greek > Latin: [originally, Academus/Akademus, a name of a hero in Greek mythology; then it became a gymnasium near Athens where Plato taught])
In the beginning, academy referred to the "olive grove of Academus" or "the groves of Academe". Plato established his school in 387 B.C. Music, philosophy, and literature were taught there. Some accounts say that Plato sat on the ground and taught while resting against the trunk of an olive tree.
Now academies generally exist as private-secondary schools, military institutions; as art, literary, and scientific societies; and institutions in the entertainment world. According to John Ayto, the more general meanings "college, place of training" derive from French.