reconnaissance

Where does the word "reconnaissance" come from? It comes from Latin recognoscere, passing through Old French and French before entering English (1810).

Reconnaissance’s story begins in Latin: recognoscere meant “to recognize, know again.” Re- 'again' plus cognoscere 'to know'. By 1100s, the word had taken hold in Old French as reconoistre. Gave rise to a noun for the act of recognizing or acknowledging. From there it passed into French as reconnaissance by 1700s-1800s. Specialized during the Napoleonic Wars into a term for surveying enemy territory. It reached English by 1810 as reconnaissance. The Napoleonic Wars made it a standard military term. Today, reconnaissance means military observation of a region to gather information about enemy forces.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient recognoscere "to recognize, know again", re- 'again' plus cognoscere 'to know'.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · 1100s reconoistre "recognition, acknowledgement", gave rise to a noun for the act of recognizing or acknowledging.
3. Stage 3 · French · 1700s-1800s reconnaissance "preliminary military survey of a territory", specialized during the Napoleonic Wars into a term for surveying enemy territory.
4. Stage 4 · English · 1810 reconnaissance "examination of enemy territory to gather information", the Napoleonic Wars made it a standard military term.