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
| 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 |
Words derived from “agnosticism”