What does the word 'solstice' literally mean?

The word “solstice” literally means “Sun stands still.”

It comes from the Latin solstitium, formed from sol, meaning “Sun,” and sistere, meaning “to stand still” or “to stop.” The phrase describes the apparent pause in the Sun’s northward or southward movement across the sky before it reverses direction.

The Sun does not literally stop moving. Earth continues rotating, and the Sun continues its apparent daily journey from east to west. What briefly reaches a turning point is the Sun’s declination: its apparent position moves as far north or south as it will go, then begins moving back.

The June solstice marks the Sun’s northernmost position, while the December solstice marks its southernmost position. This is why solstices are associated with the longest or shortest daylight periods in many places, though the exact dates of earliest sunrise and latest sunset can differ.