Drag to pan · scroll to zoom
Drag to rotate
Tracing “”…
Where does the word "custody" come from? It comes from Latin custodia, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "custody" come from? It comes from Latin custodia, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).
Custody’s story begins in Latin: custodia meant “a guarding, protection.” A guarding, a watching, from custos (guardian). It reached English by 1400s as custody. Settled as the English word for legal guardianship or imprisonment. Today, custody means the legal right to care for someone, or the state of being detained.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient custodia "a guarding, protection", a guarding, a watching, from custos (guardian).
- Stage 2 · English · 1400s custody "legal guardianship, or the state of being imprisoned", settled as the English word for legal guardianship or imprisonment.