Etymograph

English

mention

Mention comes from Old French mention, from Latin mentiō ‘a calling to mind’, from meminī ‘to remember’, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-1‘to think’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*memóne1‘to remember’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*memonai1‘to remember’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmeminī2‘to remember’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmentiō3‘mention, a calling to mind’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mention3
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500mencioun3
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1611mention3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin memini
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin mentio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English mention
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “I will make mention of thy righteousness.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-Wiktionary, Latin memini‘to think’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*memóneWiktionary, Latin memini‘to remember’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*memonaiWiktionary, Latin memini‘to remember’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmeminīWiktionary, Latin mentio‘to remember’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmentiōWiktionary, English mention‘mention, a calling to mind’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mentionWiktionary, English mention
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500menciounWiktionary, English mention
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1611mentionWiktionary, English mention. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “I will make mention of thy righteousness.”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think’

music, mind, money, amount, mouth, remain, museum, mountain, auto, min, monster, comment, mount, permanent, mental, monitor, monetary, maya, monk, mint, demonstration, amnesty, muse, mosaic, ming, mas, mandarin, monastery, mania, muster, prominence, amnesia, summon, manic, imminent, mantra, mentor, monstrous, monte, monument, 121 more

through Proto-Indo-European *memóne ‘to remember’

mun

through Latin meminī ‘to remember, recollect, recall, call to mind,…’

memento

Today it means

noun A speaking or noticing of anything, usually in a brief or cursory manner.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mention”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin memini, Latin mentio. 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 *men- / mention

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