spelling
/ˈspɛlɪŋ/
noun
Origin
Old English
spellian — to tell, speak, or announce
Overview
Meaning Now
- The process or activity of writing or naming the letters of a word in correct sequence.
- The way in which a word is spelled; the accepted orthography of a language.
Language path
Proto-Germanic → Old English → Middle English → English
Earliest form
spelling
Earliest period
14th century
Journey
The term originated from the Proto-Germanic root referring to a tale or a story (as seen in 'gospel', meaning 'good news'). During the Middle English period, the verb 'spell' began to be applied to the phonetic identification of letters in a word, a necessity for literacy as English orthography became standardized through the printing press.
Evolution
- Proto-Germanic
*spellą
“story, tale, report”
- Old English
spellian
“to discourse, preach, or tell”
- Middle English
spelling
“the act of reading letter by letter”
Transition from storytelling to mechanical literacy
Connections
Word parts
spell
root
to tell or announce
-ing
suffix
forming a gerund or verbal noun
Related across languages
German
erzählen
to tell
Old Norse
spjalla
to talk
Explore next
Related to spelling
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.