English
discrimination
Discrimination comes from Latin discriminatio ‘separation’, from discrīminō ‘to distinguish (between)’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *krey- ‘to sift, separate, divide’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*krey-‘to sift, separate, divide’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*krinō‘to sift, separate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcernō‘to distinguish, divide, separate, sift’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscernō‘to separate, set apart, divide, part’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscrīmen‘distinction, difference, discrimination’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscrīminō‘to distinguish (between)’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscriminatioas discrīminātiō‘separation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1775discrimination
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*krey-‘to sift, separate, divide’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*krinō‘to sift, separate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcernō‘to distinguish, divide, separate, sift’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscernō‘to separate, set apart, divide, part’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscrīmen‘distinction, difference, discrimination’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscrīminō‘to distinguish (between)’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdiscriminatioas discrīminātiō‘separation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1775discrimination
Earliest quotation: 1775, Samuel Johnson, A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland - Volume 1: “He who has not made the experiment, or who…”
Formed from discriminate + -ion
Proto-Indo-European *krey- ‘to sift, separate, divide’
…
Latin discernō ‘to separate, set apart, divide, part’
Latin discrīmen ‘distinction, difference, discrimination’
Latin discrīminō ‘to divide, separate, distinguish’
Latin discrīminātus ‘determined’
English discriminate
The story
In English use from the 17th century.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *krey- ‘to sift, separate, divide’
certain, secret, crime, crisis, criminal, critic, critique, riddle, hypocrite, criterion, endocrine, discernible, discernment, rime, excrete, ridder, certitude, criterium, incriminate, incrimination, recrimination, 46 more
through Latin cernō ‘to distinguish, divide, separate, sift’
secretary, discern, excrement, secretion, secrete, excretion, 10 more
through Latin discernō ‘to separate, set apart, divide, part’
Today it means
noun Discernment, the act of discriminating, discerning, distinguishing, noting or perceiving differences between things, with the intent to understand rightly and make correct decisions.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *krey- / discrimination