Where does “initials” come from?
Initials comes from Middle French initial, meaning the first letter of a word or name.
initials (English): plural of initial; API pl; An abbreviation of a...
Definitions
- plural of initial; API pl; An abbreviation of a...
Ancestry of “initials”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | initial | Chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to... |
| 2 | Middle French | initial | — |
| 3 | Latin | initiālis | initial, first, incipient |
| 4 | Latin | initium | beginning, start; rites, mysteries |
| 5 | Latin | inire | present active infinitive of ineō; to go in,... |
| 6 | Latin | īre | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | eō | I go |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | ejō | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁éyti | to go, to be going |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁ey- | to go |