amnesia

Where does the word "amnesia" come from? It comes from Greek amnesia, and was adopted directly into English (1786).

Amnesia’s story begins in Greek: amnesia meant “forgetfulness.” Literally forgetfulness, from a- (without) and mnasthai (to remember). It reached English by 1786 as amnesia. From Greek 'a-', not, plus 'mnēsis', memory; revived by 18th-century medical writers. Today, amnesia means a partial or total loss of memory.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient amnesia "forgetfulness", literally forgetfulness, from a- (without) and mnasthai (to remember).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1786 amnesia "a partial or total loss of memory", from Greek 'a-', not, plus 'mnēsis', memory; revived by 18th-century medical writers.