Etymograph

English

proscription

Proscription comes from Latin prōscrīptiō ‘advertisement’, from scrībō ‘write’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kréybʰeti.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kréybʰeti1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*skreiβō2‘to carve’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEscrībō3‘write’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōscrībō3‘to advertise, proclaim’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōscrīptiō3‘advertisement’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500proscripcion3
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1837proscription3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Italic *skreiβō
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin scribo
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English proscription
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1837, Alfred John Church, William Jackson Brodribb: “He was wholly unopposed, for the boldest spirits had…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kréybʰetiWiktionary, Proto-Italic *skreiβōreconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*skreiβōWiktionary, Latin scribo‘to carve’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEscrībōWiktionary, English proscription‘write’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōscrībōWiktionary, English proscription‘to advertise, proclaim’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōscrīptiōWiktionary, English proscription‘advertisement’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500proscripcionWiktionary, English proscription
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1837proscriptionWiktionary, English proscription. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1837, Alfred John Church, William Jackson Brodribb: “He was wholly unopposed, for the boldest spirits had…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)kréybʰeti

transcription, 25 more

through Proto-Italic *skreiβō ‘to carve’

scripture, transcript, prescription, inscription, shriver, transcribe, ascribe, scriptural, conscription, nondescript, inscribe, conscript, descript, 26 more

through Latin scrībō ‘write’

description, script, prescribe, scribe, scribble, shrift, scrivener, 37 more

Today it means

noun A prohibition.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “proscription”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Italic *skreiβō, Latin scribo. 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 *(s)kréybʰeti / proscription

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