conversationconversation

Conversation comes from Old French conversacion, from Latin conversātiō ‘way of life, conduct’, from conversor ‘to keep company with’, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert- ‘to turn’.

1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-¹‘to turn’reconstructed
2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wértetor¹‘to turn’reconstructed
3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wertō¹‘to turn’reconstructed
4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvertō¹‘to turn’
5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEversō¹‘to keep turning’
6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEversor¹‘to dwell, be busy’
7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconversor²‘to associate with’
8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconversātiō²‘way of life, conduct’
9. Old Frenchc. 842–1400conversacion²
10. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500conversacioun²
11. Englishearliest quotation 1526conversation²

1. ¹ Wiktionary, Latin conversor
2. ² Wiktionary, English conversation
3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1526, [William Tyndale, The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible): “Yt chaunſed thatt a whole yere they had their…”.