summon

Where does the word "summon" come from? It comes from Latin submonere, passing through Old French before entering English (1200s).

Summon’s story begins in Latin: submonere meant “to remind privately.” 'sub-', secretly, plus 'monere', to warn, the root of 'monitor'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as somondre. A 'summoner' served court orders; Chaucer's Summoner is a church court official. It reached English by 1200s as summon. 'summons' as a legal writ dates from the 1200s. Today, summon means to order someone to be present.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient submonere "to remind privately", 'sub-', secretly, plus 'monere', to warn, the root of 'monitor'.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval somondre "to summon", a 'summoner' served court orders; Chaucer's Summoner is a church court official.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1200s summon "to call to court", 'summons' as a legal writ dates from the 1200s.