Where does “import” come from?
Import comes from Latin importare, meaning to bring in or carry in, from Latin in- (in) and portare (to carry), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₁én (in).
import (English): Something brought in from an exterior source,...
Definitions
- Something brought in from an exterior source,...
Ancestry of “import”, step by step
import traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English importen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | importen | — |
| 2 | Old French | emporter | — |
| 3 | Latin | importō | to bring, carry or convey into; bring in from abroad, import |
| 4 | Latin | īn- | un-, non-, not |
| 5 | Latin | în | in, at, on, upon, from (space) |
| 6 | Latin | en | lookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | en | in |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁én | in |