Where does “agnosticism” come from?
Agnosticism derives from English gnostic, combined with English a and English and, ultimately tracing through Latin ad- and Latin ad to Proto-Indo-European h₂epo and al-, roots expressing negation and meaning "other" or "away."
agnosticism (English): The view that absolute truth or ultimate...
Definitions
- The view that absolute truth or ultimate...
Ancestry of “agnosticism”, step by step
agnosticism traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English A
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | A | The ordinal number first, derived from this... |
| 2 | English | AND | Alternative form of ∧, the conjunction operator;... |
| 3 | Middle English | and | and, and then; however, yet, but, though. while;... |
| 4 | Old English | and | and; even; also |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | andi | in addition, furthermore, and |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énti | opposite; near; in front |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |
via English ism
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ism | An ideology, system of thought, or practice that... |
| 2 | English | -ism | Used to form nouns of action or process or result... |
| 3 | Latin | -ismus | -ism |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | -ισμός | Forms abstract nouns |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | -μός | Forms abstract nouns |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -mós | Creates action/result nouns from verb stems |
via English Gnostic
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Gnostic | Of, or relating to, intellectual or spiritual... |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | γνωστῐκός | of or for knowing, cognitive |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | γιγνώσκω | I am aware of; I perceive, observe, know, learn;... |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵn̥h₃sḱéti | to recognise |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵneh₃- | to know |