corporation

Where does the word "corporation" come from? It comes from Latin corpus, passing through Late Latin before entering English (1450s-1610s).

Corporation’s story begins in Latin: corpus meant “body; a united whole.” Literally "body"; also used for a whole composed of united parts, a guild, or a political body. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Late Latin as corporatio. Originally used for the incarnation of Christ taking on a body. It reached English by 1450s-1610s as corporation. First meant persons united in a body for a shared purpose; by the 1610s narrowed to the legal sense of an artificial person created by law. Today, corporation means a legal entity, such as a business or organization, authorized to act as a single person under the law.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient corpus "body; a united whole", literally "body"; also used for a whole composed of united parts, a guild, or a political body.
2. Stage 2 · Late Latin · medieval corporatio "the assumption of a body", originally used for the incarnation of Christ taking on a body.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1450s-1610s corporation "a legally authorized entity, an artificial person created by law", first meant persons united in a body for a shared purpose; by the 1610s narrowed to the legal sense of an artificial person created by law.