mea culpa

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

Mea culpa’s story begins in Latin: mea culpa meant “through my fault.” Through my fault, from meus (my) and culpa (fault, blame). It reached English by 1300s as mea culpa. From the Latin prayer 'Confiteor': 'mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa'. Today, mea culpa means an acknowledgment of one's own mistake or fault.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient mea culpa "through my fault", through my fault, from meus (my) and culpa (fault, blame).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1300s mea culpa "an acknowledgment of one's own fault or error", from the Latin prayer 'Confiteor': 'mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa'.