Etymograph

English

initiation

Initiation comes from Latin initiō ‘to begin, originate’, from Proto-Italic *eō ‘to go’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- ‘to go’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ey-1‘to go’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁éyti1‘to go, to be going’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*ejō1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*eō1‘to go’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*eneō1‘to begin, start’reconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEineō1‘to begin’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitium1‘beginning’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitiō2‘to begin, originate’
  9. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitiātiō3
  10. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600initiation3
  11. Englishtodayinitiation3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin initio
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin initiatio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English initiation

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ey-Wiktionary, Latin initio‘to go’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁éytiWiktionary, Latin initio‘to go, to be going’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*ejōWiktionary, Latin initioreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*eōWiktionary, Latin initio‘to go’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*eneōWiktionary, Latin initio‘to begin, start’reconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEineōWiktionary, Latin initio‘to begin’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitiumWiktionary, Latin initio‘beginning’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitiōWiktionary, Latin initiatio‘to begin, originate’
  9. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinitiātiōWiktionary, English initiation
  10. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600initiationWiktionary, English initiation
  11. EnglishtodayinitiationWiktionary, English initiation

Formed from initiate + -ion

Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- ‘to go’

…

Latin ineō ‘to begin’

Latin initium ‘beginning’

Latin initiō ‘to begin, originate’

Latin initiātus ‘begun, originated, having been begun’

English initiate

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- ‘to go’

eid, itinerary, iter, 28 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁éyti ‘to go, to be going’

ion, isthmus, cation, anionic, 23 more

through Proto-Italic *eō ‘to go’

transition, ambient, ambitious, ambition, eyre, ambiance, sedition, ambit, 8 more

Today it means

noun The act of initiating, or the process of being initiated or introduced.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “initiation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin initio, Latin initiatio. 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 *h₁ey- / initiation

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