English
decadence
Decadence comes from Medieval Latin decadentia ‘decay’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ḱh₂d-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱh₂d-root as named
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500decadentia‘decay’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdécadence
- Englishearliest quotation 1956decadence
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱh₂d-root as named
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500decadentia‘decay’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdécadence
- Englishearliest quotation 1956decadence
Earliest quotation: 1956, Arthur C. Clarke, The City and the Stars: “Stability, however, is not enough. It leads too easily…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱh₂d-
chance, occasion, casual, incident, coincidence, coincide, incidence, cascade, cadaver, 4 more
Today it means
noun A state of moral or artistic decline or deterioration; decay
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ḱh₂d- / decadence