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Where does the word "major" come from? It comes from Latin major, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "major" come from? It comes from Latin major, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).
Major’s story begins in Latin: major meant “greater.” Comparative of 'magnus', great. It reached English by 1300s as major. Military 'majors' date from the 1600s; college 'majors' from the 1900s. Today, major means important; greater.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient major "greater", comparative of 'magnus', great.
- Stage 2 · English · 1300s major "greater", military 'majors' date from the 1600s; college 'majors' from the 1900s.