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Origin and history of prole

prole(n.)

short for proletarian (n.), 1887 (G.B. Shaw); popularized by George Orwell's 1949 novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four." As an adjective from 1938. Related: Proly (adj.); prolier-than-thou.

Entries linking to prole

proletarian

1650s (n.) "member of the lowest or poorest class of a community;" 1660s (adj.) "of or belonging to the lowest class of people," hence "mean, vile, vulgar;" with -ian + Latin proletarius "citizen of the lowest class" (as an adjective, "relating to offspring"), from proles "offspring, progeny" (see prolific). In ancient Rome, according to the traditional division of the state, the proletarius was one of the propertyless people, exempted from taxes and military service, who served the state only by having children. The modern political sense of proletarian is by 1851.

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    proletariat
    also proletariate, "the lowest and poorest class," 1853, from French prolétariat, from Latin proletarius (see proletarian). In political economics, "indigent wage-earners, , the class of wage-workers dependent on daily or casual employment" from 1856. The Englished form proletary
    labor
    c. 1300, "a task, a project" (such as the labors of Hercules); later "exertion of the body; trouble, difficulty, hardship" (late 14c.), from Old French labor "toil, work, exertion, task; tribulation, suffering" (12c., Modern French labeur), from Latin labor "toil, exertion; hards
    barbarian
    mid-14c., "foreign, of another nation or culture," from Medieval Latin barbarinus (see barbarian (n.)). The meaning "of or pertaining to savages, rude, uncivilized" is from 1590s....early 15c., in reference to classical history, "a non-Roman or non-Greek," earlier barbar (late 14
    physiology
    1560s, "study and description of natural objects, natural philosophy" (a sense now obsolete), from French physiologie (16c.) or directly from Latin physiologia "natural science, study of nature," from Greek physiologia "natural science, inquiry into nature," from physios "nature"
    pastoral
    early 15c., "of or pertaining to shepherds or the life of a shepherd," from Old French pastoral (13c.) and directly from Latin pastoralis "of herdsmen, of shepherds," from pastor "shepherd" (see pastor (n.)). Meaning "of or pertaining to a Christian pastor or his office" is from
    meme
    "an idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture," 1976, introduced by evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins in "The Selfish Gene," coined by him from Greek sources, such as mimeisthai "to imitate" (see mime (n.)), and intended to echo gene. We n
    dystopia
    "imaginary bad place," 1952, from dys- "bad, abnormal" + ending abstracted from utopia. Earlier in medical use, "displacement of an organ" (by 1844), with second element from Greek topos "place" (see topos). Dystopian was used in the non-medical sense in 1868 by J.S. Mill: I may
    revolution
    late 14c., revolucioun, originally of celestial bodies, "one (apparent) rotation about the earth," also the time required for this, also "act or fact of moving in a circular course," from Old French revolucion "course, revolution" of celestial bodies (13c.) or directly from Late
    account
    c. 1300, "counting," especially "reckoning of money received and paid, detailed statement of funds owed or spent or property held," from Old French acont "(financial) account, reckoning, terminal payment," from a "to" (see ad-) + cont "counting, reckoning of money to be paid," fr
    realm
    c. 1300, reaume, "kingdom, domain under a sovereign, royal jurisdiction," from Old French reaume, later realme, variants (in part by influence of Old French reial "regal," from Latin  regalis) of roiaume "kingdom." This is possibly from a Gallo-Romance *regiminem, "formed as

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