Etymograph

English

society

Society comes from Middle French societé, from Latin societās ‘fellowship’, from socius ‘companion’, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-1‘to follow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sokʷh₂ṓy1uncertain
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sokʷyós1‘follower, companion’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sokjos1‘companion’reconstructed
  5. Archaic Latinc. 700–75 BCEsokios1
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsocius1‘partner, companion’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsocietās1‘fellowship, association’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400societé1
  9. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600societé1
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1813society1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English society
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1813, Jane Austen: “"What a charming amusement for young people this is,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-Wiktionary, English society‘to follow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sokʷh₂ṓyWiktionary, English societyuncertain
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sokʷyósWiktionary, English society‘follower, companion’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sokjosWiktionary, English society‘companion’reconstructed
  5. Archaic Latinc. 700–75 BCEsokiosWiktionary, English society
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsociusWiktionary, English society‘partner, companion’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsocietāsWiktionary, English society‘fellowship, association’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400societéWiktionary, English society
  9. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600societéWiktionary, English society
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1813societyWiktionary, English society. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1813, Jane Austen: “"What a charming amusement for young people this is,…”

first attested First attested in the 1530s (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

The story

First attested in the 1530s.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with society, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’

  • see ← seen ← sēon ← *sehwan ← *sehwaną
  • say ← saien ← seċġan ← *saggjan ← *sagjaną
  • second ← secunde ← secundus ← *sekʷondo-
  • saw ← sawe ← saga ← *sagā ← *sagǭ
  • executive ← executif ← executivus ← exsequi
  • suit ← sute ← suite ← siute ← *sequita
  • sight ← sighte ← sihþ ← *sihti ← *sehwan
  • subsequent ← subsequēns
  • sequence ← sequentia ← sequēns ← sequor ← *sekʷōr
  • pursue ← pursuen ← pursure ← prōsequor ← sequor
  • sue ← seuen ← suer
  • consecutive ← consécutif ← cōnsecūtīvus ← cōnsecūtus ← cōnsequor

84 more relatives in the full family tree

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Today it means

noun A long-standing group of people sharing cultural aspects such as language, dress, norms of behavior and artistic forms.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “society”. 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 *sekʷ- / society