Etymology

protoscience

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Today it means: An unscientific or pseudoscientific field of study which later becomes or spawns a science (e.g., astrology led to astronomy, alchemy led to chemistry, and, most generally, natural philosophy led to science). Full definition →

English science ← Middle English science ← Old French science
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*per-der.?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*pér
  3. Proto-Indo-European*pró
  4. Ancient Greekπρό (pró)
  5. Ancient Greekπρῶτος (prôtos)
  6. Ancient Greekπρωτο- (prōto-)
  7. Englishproto-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*sek-?
  9. Proto-Indo-European*skey-
  10. Latinsciō
  11. Latinsciēns
  12. Latinscientia
  13. Old Frenchscience
  14. Middle Englishscience
  15. Englishscience
  16. English todayprotoscience

From proto- + science.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.