English
libertarian
The noun is derived from liber(ty) + -arian (suffix denoting an advocate of or believer in something).
Formed from liberty + -arian
Proto-Indo-European *h₁lewdʰ- ‘to grow’
…
Latin liber ‘free’
Latin libertas ‘freedom’
Old French liberté
Middle English liberte ‘freedom’
English liberty
first attested The word was first attested in English in 1789 in William Belsham’s Essays: see the quotation (as stated in the etymology)
The story
The noun is derived from liber(ty) + -arian (suffix denoting an advocate of or believer in something). The word was first attested in English in 1789 in William Belsham’s Essays: see the quotation. This was contrasted with necessitarian, in the context of free will, and was not used in the more frequently encountered modern sense. Libertaire is derived from Latin libertas.
Today it means
noun One who advocates liberty, either generally or in relation to a specific issue.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / libertarian