Where does “SIGINT” come from?

SIGINT (English) comes from English intelligence, from Middle English intelligence, from Old French intelligence, from Latin intelligentia, from Latin intelligēns, from Latin intellegō, from Latin legō, from Latin lēx — to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to...

SIGINT (English): Information gained from intercepted signals,...

Definitions

  1. Information gained from intercepted signals,...

Ancestry of “SIGINT”, step by step

SIGINT traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English intelligence

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishintelligenceCapacity of mind, especially to understand...
2Middle EnglishintelligenceComprehension, intelligence; the ability to understand
3Old Frenchintelligencecomprehension; meaning; ability to comprehend
4LatinintelligentiaAlternative form of intellegentia
5Latinintelligēns
6Latinintellegōto understand, comprehend, realize, come to know
7Latinlegōto collect, gather, bring together, catch
8Latinlēxa proposition or motion for a law made to the people by a magistrate, a bill
9Proto-Italiclēg-
10Proto-Indo-Europeanleǵ-s
11Proto-Indo-Europeanleǵ-to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to...

via English signal

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsignalA sequence of states representing an encoded...
2Old Frenchsegnalemblem; badge; signature; distinguishing mark...
3Medieval Latinsignalesignal
4Latinsignālis
5Latinsignumvisible indication: sign, mark, signal; seal,...
6Proto-Italicseknomsign
7Proto-Indo-Europeansek-to cut, cut off, sever
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leǵ-