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Origin and history of echelon

echelon(n.)

1796, echellon, "step-like arrangement of troops," from French échelon "level, echelon," literally "rung of a ladder," from Old French eschelon, from eschiele "ladder," from Late Latin scala "stair, slope," from Latin scalae (plural) "ladder, steps," which is reconstructed to be from PIE *skand- "to spring, leap" (see scale (v.1)). The sense of "level, subdivision" is from World War I.

also from 1796

Entries linking to echelon

scale(v.1)

"to climb (a wall) by or as by a ladder; attack with scaling ladders," late 14c., scalen, from Latin scala "ladder, flight of stairs," from *scansla, from stem of scandere "to climb, rise, mount," which is reconstructed to be from PIE *skand- "to spring, leap, climb" (source also of Sanskrit skandati "hastens, leaps, jumps;" Greek skandalon "stumbling block;" Middle Irish sescaind "he sprang, jumped," sceinm "a bound, jump").

Middle English scale (n.) "ladder used in sieges," is attested c. 1400, from the Latin noun. The verb in general and figurative use (of mountains, heights of pleasure, etc.) is attested by 16c. Related: Scaled; scaling.

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    scaffold
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