source

Where does the word "source" come from? It comes from Latin surgere, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

Source’s story begins in Latin: surgere meant “to rise.” 'sub-', from below, plus 'regere', to direct. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as sourse. The rising point of a river. It reached English by 1300s as source. The sense 'origin of information' came in the 1700s. Today, source means a place or person from which something comes.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient surgere "to rise", 'sub-', from below, plus 'regere', to direct.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval sourse "spring of water", the rising point of a river.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s source "spring", the sense 'origin of information' came in the 1700s.