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Today it means

martial

relating to war

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Where does the word "martial" come from? It comes from Latin martialis, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).

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Where does the word "martial" come from? It comes from Latin martialis, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).

Martial’s story begins in Latin: martialis meant “of Mars.” From 'Mars', the Roman god of war. It reached English by 1300s as martial. 'martial arts' dates from the 1930s. Today, martial means relating to war.

  1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient martialis "of Mars", from 'Mars', the Roman god of war.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1300s martial "warlike", 'martial arts' dates from the 1930s.

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