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Origin and history of sane

sane(adj.)

"of sound mind, mentally sound," 1721, a back-formation from insane or sanity or else from Latin sanus "sound, healthy," in its figurative or transferred use, "of sound mind, rational, sane," also, of style, "correct;" a word of uncertain origin.

It is perhaps from PIE *seh-no- from *seh- "to tie." That reconstruction "is purely mechanical," according to de Vaan, the meaning might be "which is in place, in order." Or it could be from a different root meaning "to satisfy" as in Latin satis "enough."

Used earlier, of the body, with a sense of "healthy" (1620s), but this has been rare in English. OED writes, "The almost entire restriction in English to a sense 'mentally sound' is due to the use in antithesis with insane, which (like the Latin insanus, its source) always referred to mental condition." Related: Sanely; saneness.

also from 1721

Entries linking to sane

insane(adj.)

1550s, of persons, "mentally damaged," from Latin insanus "mad, insane, of unsound mind; outrageous, excessive, extravagant," from in- "not" (see in- (1)) + sanus "well, healthy, sane" (see sane). In reference to actions, "irrational, evidencing madness," from 1842 in English. The noun meaning "insane person" is attested from 1786. For the notion of insanity as sickness, compare lunatic; and Italian pazzo "insane," originally a euphemism, from Latin patiens "suffering." German verrückt, literally past participle of verrücken "to displace," "applied to the brain as to a clock that is 'out of order' " [Buck].

sanity(n.)

early 15c., sanite, "healthy condition, health," a sense now obsolete, from Old French sanité "health," from Latin sanitatem (nominative sanitas) "health, soundness of body; sanity, soundness of mind; reason; correctness of speech;" from sanus "healthy; sane" (see sane). Meaning "soundness of mind" is attested from c. 1600.

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Trends of sane

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

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sanatorium
by 1839 as "hospital, usually private, for the treatment of invalids, convalescents, etc., who might benefit from open air;" by 1842 as "place to which people go for the sake of health or to regain health;" Modern Latin, noun use of neuter of Late Latin adjective sanitorius "heal
sanitary
1823, "pertaining to health or hygiene," from French sanitaire (1812), from Latin sanitas "health," from sanus "healthy; sane" (see sane). In reference to menstrual devices, by 1881 (in sanitary towel). In U.S. history the Sanitary Commission, created by the Secretary of War in 1
reasonable
c. 1300, resonable, "having sound judgment, endowed with the faculty of reason," from Old French raisonable, from Latin rationabilis, from ratio "reckoning, understanding, motive, cause," from ratus, past participle of reri "to reckon, think" (from PIE root *re- "to reason, count
mens sana in corpore sano
No sane man can afford to dispense with debilitating pleasures; no ascetic can be considered reliably sane....
Catch-22
Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he had to fly them....If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to....
salesmanship
A man in his sane mind, with the usual organs of speech, has a right to be treated as if he knows what he wants, and is able...
wise
Old English wis "learned, sagacious, cunning; sane; prudent, discreet; experienced; having the power of discerning and judging...
sienna
brownish-ochre color, by 1760 (terra-sienna), from Italian terra di Sienna "earth of Siena," region in Italy where the coloring material first was produced from a type of earth mined there. It is used as a pigment in both oil and watercolor painting. See Siena. Burnt sienna is t
pivot
"pin on which a wheel or other object turns," 1610s, from French pivot, from Old French pivot "hinge pin, pivot" (12c.), also "penis," a word of uncertain origin. Pevetsheres, evidently some kind of shears, is mentioned in a will registered in York in 1398. Figurative sense of "t
heuristic
"serving to discover or find out," 1821, irregular formation from Greek heuriskein "to find; find out, discover; devise, invent; get, gain, procure" (from PIE *were- (2) "to find;" cognate with Old Irish fuar "I have found") + -istic. As a noun, from 1860. Greek had heuretikos "i

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