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Origin and history of obit

obit(n.)

late 14c., "death," a sense now obsolete, from Old French obit or directly from Medieval Latin obitus "death" (a figurative use, literally "a going down, a going to a place"), noun use of past participle of Latin obire "to die," literally "to go toward" (see obituary).

From c. 1400 as "anniversary of a person's death; memorial service held on the anniversary of a person's death." In modern usage (since 1874) it is usually a clipped form of obituary, though it had the same meaning of "published death notice" 15c.-17c. The scholarly abbreviation ob. with date is from Latin obiit "(he) died," third person singular of obire.

also from late 14c.

Entries linking to obit

obituary(n.)

1706, "register of deaths, a list of the dead," from Medieval Latin obituarius "a record of the death of a person," literally "pertaining to death," from Latin obitus "departure, a going to meet, encounter" (a euphemism for "death"), from stem of obire "go toward, go to meet" (as in mortem obire "meet death"), from ob "toward" (see ob-) + ire "to go" (from PIE root *ei- "to go").

The meaning "a record or announcement of a death," especially in a newspaper, and including a brief biographical sketch, is from 1738. As an adjective, "relating to or recording a death," from 1828.

A similar euphemism is in Old English forðfaran "to die," literally "to go forth;" utsið "death," literally "going out, departure." Old French trespasser (Modern French trépasser; see trespass (v.)) came to be used euphemistically for "to die" ("pass beyond" the limit or boundary of death), a sense also found 15c. in English. Also compare euphemistic passed, cross over, etc.

*ei-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to go."

It might form all or part of: Abitur; adit; ambience; ambient; ambit; ambition; ambitious; andante; anion; cation; circuit; coitus; commence; commencement; concomitant; constable; count (n.1) title of nobility; county; dysprosium; errant; exit; initial; initiate; initiation; introit; ion; issue; itinerant; itinerary; janitor; January; Janus; Jena; Mahayana; obit; obituary; perish; praetor; Praetorian; preterite; sedition; sudden; trance; transient; transit; transitive; viscount.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit e'ti "goes," imas "we go," ayanam "a going, way;" Avestan ae'iti "goes," Old Persian aitiy "goes;" Greek ienai "to go;" Latin ire "to go," iter "a way;" Old Irish ethaim "I go," Irish bothar "a road" (from *bou-itro- "cows' way"), Gaulish eimu "we go;" Lithuanian eiti "to go;" Old Church Slavonic iti "go;" Bulgarian ida "I go;" Russian idti "to go;" Gothic iddja "went."