English
immortality
Immortality comes from Latin immortālis ‘immortal, undying, not subject to death’, from mortālis ‘mortal’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mer- ‘to die’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mer-1‘to die’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mértis ~ *mr̥téys1reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mortis1‘death’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmors1‘death’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmortālis2‘mortal’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimmortālis3‘immortal, undying, not subject to death’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimmortālitās4
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400immortalité4
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500immortalitee4
- Englishearliest quotation 1837immortality4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin mortalis
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin immortalis
- 3 Wiktionary, Latin immortalitas
- 4 Wiktionary, English immortality
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1837, Letitia Elizabeth Landon, The Marriage Morning: “In the little, as in the great things of…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mer-Wiktionary, Latin mortalis‘to die’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mértis ~ *mr̥téysWiktionary, Latin mortalisreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mortisWiktionary, Latin mortalis‘death’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmorsWiktionary, Latin mortalis‘death’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmortālisWiktionary, Latin immortalis‘mortal’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimmortālisWiktionary, Latin immortalitas‘immortal, undying, not subject to death’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimmortālitāsWiktionary, English immortality
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400immortalitéWiktionary, English immortality
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500immortaliteeWiktionary, English immortality
- Englishearliest quotation 1837immortalityWiktionary, English immortality. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1837, Letitia Elizabeth Landon, The Marriage Morning: “In the little, as in the great things of…”
Formed from immortal + -ity
Proto-Indo-European *mer- ‘to die’
…
Proto-Italic *mortis ‘death’
Latin mors ‘death’
Latin mortālis ‘mortal’
Latin immortālis ‘immortal, undying, not subject to death’
English immortal
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *mer- ‘to die’
remember, march, murder, marine, nightmare, mere, marsh, maritime, mare, mara, muller, mortar, moor, morbid, morn, ambrosia, mortuary, marinate, marinara, maar, moribund, cormorant, mortally, mortier, 57 more
through Proto-Italic *mortis ‘death’
mortification, mortician, 8 more
through Latin mors ‘death’
through Latin mortālis ‘mortal’
Today it means
noun Never dying
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “immortality”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin mortalis, Latin immortalis, Latin immortalitas. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *mer- / immortality