Here's a breakdown of its origin:
* "Kilo": This prefix comes from the Greek word "khilioi," meaning "thousand." It indicates a multiplier of 1000.
* "Meter": The meter itself was established in France in 1791 as one ten-millionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator along a meridian passing through Paris.
Therefore, a kilometer is simply 1000 meters.
The metric system was designed to be a simple and logical system based on decimal units. The kilometer was adopted as a standard unit of distance in many countries, gradually replacing older units like the mile.