Advertisement

Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

Origin and history of proxy

proxy(n.)

early 15c., procusie, proccy, prokecye, "agency of one who acts instead of another, office or authority of a substitute; letter of power of attorney," contraction of Anglo-French procuracie (c. 1300), from Medieval Latin procuratia "administration," from Latin procuratio "a caring for, management," from procurare "manage" (see procure). Also compare proctor (n.).

Meaning "person who is deputed to represent or act for another" is from 1610s. Of things, "that which takes the place of something else," 1630s. Meaning "vote sent by a deputy" is from 1650s in a Rhode Island context. Proxy war, one started or stoked by, but not directly involving, a major power is by 1955.

also from early 15c.

Entries linking to proxy

proctor(n.)

"one employed to manage the affairs of another," late 14c., contraction of procurator (c. 1300) "steward or manager of a household;" also "a provider" (see procurator). From late 14c. as "one who acts or speaks for another; spokesman, advocate;" early 15c. as "business manager or financial administrator of a church, college, holy order, etc." Related: Proctorial; proctorship.

procure(v.)

c. 1300, "bring about, cause, effect," from Old French procurer "care for, be occupied with; bring about, cause; acquire, provide" (13c.) and directly from Late Latin procurare "manage, take care of;" from pro "in behalf of" (see pro-) + curare "care for" (see cure (v.)).

The main modern sense of "obtain; recruit" (late 14c.) is via the meaning "take pains to get or bring about" (mid-14c.). It had broader meanings in Middle English: to procure to slay was "cause to be slain;" procure to break, "cause to be broken," etc. The meaning "to obtain (women) for sexual gratification" of others is attested from c. 1600. Related: Procured; procuring.

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trends of proxy

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    procurator
    c. 1300, procuratour, "steward or manager of a household;" also "a provider" (late 13c. as a surname), from Old French procuratour "attorney, agent, proxy, spokesman" (13c., Modern French procurateur) and directly from Latin procurator "manager, overseer, agent, deputy," agent no
    vicar
    vicaire "deputy, second in command," also in the ecclesiastical sense (12c.), from Latin vicarius "a substitute, deputy, proxy...
    agent
    late 15c., "one who acts," from Latin agentem (nominative agens) "effective, powerful," present participle of agere "to set in motion, drive forward; to do, perform; keep in movement" (from PIE root *ag- "to drive, draw out or forth, move"). The meaning "any natural force or subs
    privilege
    mid-12c. "grant, commission" (recorded earlier in Old English, but as a Latin word), from Old French privilege "right, priority, privilege" (12c.) and directly from Latin privilegium "law applying to one person, bill of law in favor of or against an individual;" in the post-Augus
    coordinate
    1640s, "of the same order, belonging to the same rank or degree," from Medieval Latin coordinatus, past participle of coordinare "to set in order, arrange," from assimilated form of com "with, together" (see com-) + ordinatio "arrangement," from ordo "row, rank, series, arrangeme
    Jurassic
    "of or pertaining to the geological period between the Triassic and the Cretaceous," 1823, from French Jurassique, literally "of the Jura Mountains," between France and Switzerland, whose limestones were laid down during this geological period. The name was chosen by von Humboldt
    Semite
    1847, "a Jew, Arab, Assyrian, or Aramaean" (an apparently isolated use from 1797 refers to the Semitic language group), back-formation from Semitic or else from French Sémite (1845), from Modern Latin Semita, from Late Latin Sem, Greek Sēm "Shem," one of the three sons of Noah (G
    intuitive
    1640s, "perceiving directly and immediately," from French intuitif or directly from Medieval Latin intuitivus, from intuit-, past-participle stem of Latin intueri "look at, consider," from in- "into" (from PIE root *en "in") + tueri "to look at, watch over," a word of uncertain o
    sand
    "water-worn detritus finer than gravel; fine particles of rocks (largely crystalline rocks, especially quartz); the material of the beach, desert, or sea-bed;" Old English sand, from Proto-Germanic *sandam (source also of Old Norse sandr, Old Frisian sond, Middle Dutch sant, Dutc
    peremptory
    mid-15c., peremptorie, "absolute, allowing no refusal," a legal term, from Anglo-French peremptorie, from Late Latin peremptorius "destructive, decisive, final," from peremptor "destroyer," agent noun from past-participle stem of Latin perimpere "destroy, cut off," from per "away

    Share proxy

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trending
    Dictionary entries near proxy
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.