English → Latin
“etymology” in Latin
orīgōact, event or process of coming into existence: beginning, origination; event or process of being born, birth; origin, setymonetymonetymologiaetymologyŏrīgĭnātĭothe derivation of wordsetymologicusetymologicalquīwho, that, which, whatstōicusstoic; stoical
The English word etymology itself goes back to Latin etymologia.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
etymology
(1) (1) The derivation of a word, origo; etymon (the true explanation and meaning of a word by virtue of its derivation; Varr., R.R., 1, 48, 2; Gell., 18, 4, extr., where, etyma vocum et origines). (2) The deriving of a word from a root, etymologia (the deriving and explaining of a word from its root, in Cic., Top., 8, 35, litterally translated by veriloquium, to which, however, he himself would prefer notatio): originatio (derivation, but only as a term recommended by some; Vid: Quint., 1, 6, 28): enodatio nominum (the development of nouns; Cic., Top., 7, 31; N.D., 3, 24, 62). (3) As a science, etymologice (Varr., L.L., 7, 1, §4): etymologia: verborum explicatio... quam [Stoici] etymologiam appellabant (Cic., Acad., 1, 8, 32; he defines it to be the explaining qua de causa quaeque essent nominata).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for etymology?
- The usual Latin words for “etymology” are orīgō, etymon, etymologia; also ŏrīgĭnātĭo, etymologicus, quī. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.