Where does “surveillance” come from?
surveillance (Dutch) comes from French surveillance, from French surveiller, from Old French surveillier, from Old French veillier, from Vulgar Latin viglare, from Latin vigilō, from Latin vigil, from Proto-Indo-European weǵ- — lively, awake; strong.
surveillance (Dutch): stakeout
Ancestry of “surveillance”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | surveillance | surveillance; supervision |
| 2 | French | surveiller | to monitor, to survey, to watch |
| 3 | Old French | surveillier | to keep watch over |
| 4 | Old French | veillier | to be awake |
| 5 | Vulgar Latin | viglare | — |
| 6 | Latin | vigilō | — |
| 7 | Latin | vigil | awake, watching, alert; watchman, guard,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | weǵ- | lively, awake; strong |