Where does “mediumship” come from?
Mediumship derives from English medium, from Latin medium (neuter form of medius, meaning middle), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European médʰyos with the same sense.
mediumship (English): The state of being a medium psychic conduit; purported ability to mediate communication between spirits of the dead and living human beings
Definitions
- The state of being a medium psychic conduit; purported ability to mediate communication between spirits of the dead and living human beings
Ancestry of “mediumship”, step by step
mediumship traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English ship
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ship | A water-borne vessel generally larger than a... |
| 2 | English | relationship | Connection or association; the condition of being... |
| 3 | English | relation | The manner in which two things may be associated;... |
| 4 | Middle English | relacion | — |
| 5 | Old French | relacion | — |
| 6 | Latin | relātiō | carrying or bringing back |
| 7 | Latin | referō | to bear, bring, drive, or carry back, off, or away |
| 8 | Latin | rĕ- | back, backwards |
| 9 | Latin | prōdūcō | to lead or bring forth, forward or out |
| 10 | Latin | prō- | forward direction, forward movement |
| 11 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |
via English Medium
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Medium | The material of the surrounding environment, e.g. solid, liquid, gas, vacuum, or a specific substance such as a solvent |
| 2 | Latin | medium | inflection of medius: ## masculine accusative... |
| 3 | Proto-Italic | meðjos | middle |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | médʰyos | middle |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | medʰi- | with, among; with, along |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | me | in the middle of, near, by, around, with |