English
assertion
Assertion comes from Latin asserō ‘to join someone or something to oneself’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ser- ‘to flow’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ser-‘to flow’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*séretireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*serō‘to join, bind, link’reconstructed
- Proto-Italic, derivedc. 1500–700 BCE*adserō‘to join to oneself’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasserō‘to join someone or something to oneself’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEassertiō
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500assercioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1869assertion
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ser-‘to flow’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*séretireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*serō‘to join, bind, link’reconstructed
- Proto-Italic, derivedc. 1500–700 BCE*adserō‘to join to oneself’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasserō‘to join someone or something to oneself’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEassertiō
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500assercioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1869assertion
Earliest quotation: 1869, Alfred Russel Wallace, The Malay Archipelago: “Do tell us the real name of your country,…”
Equivalent to assert + -ion
Latin asserō ‘declare someone free or a slave by laying…’
Latin assertus ‘declared free, set free, liberated, having…’
English assert
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ser- ‘to flow’
service, sort, stream, hero, serve, conservative, reservoir, heresy, sermon, sorcery, sorcerer, conservatism, concierge, observant, servitude, sark, heretic, strudel, conservator, servile, serf, 34 more
through Proto-Indo-European *séreti
through Proto-Italic *serō ‘to join, bind, link’
Today it means
noun The act of asserting; positive declaration or averment.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ser- / assertion