English
différance
Différance comes from French différance ‘deferral’, from Latin differō ‘differ’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- ‘to bear, carry’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰer-‘to bear, carry’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰéreti‘to be carrying’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*ferō‘to carry, bear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEferō‘carry, bear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdifferō‘differ’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdifférer‘to defer’
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentdifférance‘deferral’
- Englishearliest quotation 1980same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰer-‘to bear, carry’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰéreti‘to be carrying’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*ferō‘to carry, bear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEferō‘carry, bear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdifferō‘differ’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdifférer‘to defer’
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentdifférance‘deferral’
- Englishearliest quotation 1980same form
Earliest quotation: 1980, Roger Poole, Roger Poole on the seductions and dangers of structuralism: “This is the final Derridan manoeuvre, the showing up…”
The story
From French différance (‘deferral’) (coined in this sense by Derrida), from différer (‘to defer’); but punning on différence (‘difference’).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- ‘to bear, carry’
bar, birth, prefer, broad, bread, fortune, burden, bearing, barrel, barn, bore, fury, baron, breeze, bark, berth, broom, barrow, embargo, fret, ferret, insufferable, furtive, bier, bahar, proffer, birr, barrette, bairn, burnish, 112 more
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰéreti ‘to be carrying’
bear, borne, phosphate, phosphorus, euphoria, dysphoria, semaphore, phosphine, 90 more
through Proto-Italic *ferō ‘to carry, bear’
suffering, infertility, infertile, indifferently, 66 more
through Latin ferō ‘carry, bear’
offer, relative, reference, transfer, relation, suffer, relate, translation, extraordinary, referendum, referee, differently, frustration, fertility, translate, fertile, strangely, confer, differentiation, infer, extravagant, indifferent, fertilization, elated, frustrate, ablation, infra, elation, deference, collation, fertilize, extraneous, collate, strangeness, deferential, ablative, differentially, oblate, efferent, differentiable, 72 more
through Latin differō ‘differ’
Today it means
noun The endless deferral of any ultimate meaning in a word or sentence, owing to the necessity of recourse to a potentially infinite series of other, equally uncertain words or signs.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- / différance