English
supersession
Supersession comes from Medieval Latin supersedeō ‘supersede’, from Latin sedeō ‘sit’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sed-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-1‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sedéh₁yeti1reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sedēō1‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsedeō1‘sit’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500supersedeō2‘supersede’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500supersessiō2
- Englishearliest quotation 1886supersession2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin supersedeo
- 2 Wiktionary, English supersession
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1886, Henry James, The Princess Casamassima: “Two points became perfectly clear: one was that she…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-Wiktionary, Latin supersedeo‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sedéh₁yetiWiktionary, Latin supersedeoreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sedēōWiktionary, Latin supersedeo‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsedeōWiktionary, Latin supersedeo‘sit’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500supersedeōWiktionary, English supersession‘supersede’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500supersessiōWiktionary, English supersession
- Englishearliest quotation 1886supersessionWiktionary, English supersession. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1886, Henry James, The Princess Casamassima: “Two points became perfectly clear: one was that she…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sed- ‘to sit’
set, sell, method, sitting, sit, chair, seat, settle, nest, niche, saddle, exodus, possess, nye, subsidy, prasad, cathode, soot, anode, beset, setter, sate, chaise, salo, besiege, nidal, nias, ersatz, polyhedron, 80 more
through Proto-Italic *sedēō ‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’
assessor, presidente, assize, 23 more
through Latin sedeō ‘sit’
president, size, resident, siege, possession, assess, sedan, reside, sediment, residual, residue, obsession, sedentary, insidious, sedative, dissident, possessive, sedate, obsess, presidio, seance, presidium, sessile, 25 more
Today it means
noun The act of superseding; the fact of having been superseded.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “supersession”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin supersedeo. 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 *sed- / supersession