English
foretale
From fore- + tale; compare foretell.
Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘before, formerly’
Proto-Germanic *fura- ‘before, in front of, for’
Proto-West Germanic *forē- ‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’
English fore-
Proto-Indo-European *del- ‘to reckon, count’
Proto-Germanic *talō ‘calculation, number’
Proto-West Germanic *talu ‘calculation, counting’
Old English talu ‘tale, series, calculation’
Middle English tale ‘personal narrative, account’
English tale
Today it means
noun An account or telling given as an introduction to a larger body of work; prologue; a prior or previous recollection or account of events
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / foretale