Legacy
/ˈlɛɡəsi/noun
Something handed down from the past, especially property, traditions, or influence.
Did you know?Legacy comes through Old French from Latin legal language, where a legacy was literally a bequest made by a will—proof that words about inheritance once lived in the shadow of death.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*leg-
“to gather, collect, choose”
Latin
Latin
legare
“to appoint, dispatch, bequeath by will”
Late Latin
Latin
legatia
“an embassy, a mission; a bequest in legal usage”
Old French
Old French
legacie
“a bequest, inheritance”
Middle English
English
legacie
“a gift left by will”
Modern English
English
legacy
“something handed down from the past”
Explore more surprising origins