English
semisomnia
Semisomnia comes from Latin somnus ‘sleep’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *swep-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swep-‘to sleep’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*swépnos‘sleep, slumber’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsomnus‘sleep’
- Englishearliest quotation 2007semisomnia
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swep-‘to sleep’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*swépnos‘sleep, slumber’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsomnus‘sleep’
- Englishearliest quotation 2007semisomnia
Earliest quotation: 2007, Catherine Vonledebur, Too tired to get night's sleep: “Like many people, Heidi is suffering from the effects…”
The story
Coined by British sleep expert Neil Stanley in 2007.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *swep- ‘to sleep’
hypnotic, hypnosis, soporific, 18 more
through Latin somnus ‘sleep’
Today it means
noun A chronic state of low-grade exhaustion caused by too little or fitful sleep.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *swep- / semisomnia