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Origin and history of agitation

agitation(n.)

1560s, "debate, discussion" (on the notion of "a mental tossing to and fro"), from French agitation, from Latin agitationem (nominative agitatio) "motion, agitation," noun of action from past-participle stem of agitare "move to and fro," frequentative of agere "to set in motion, drive forward; keep in movement" (from PIE root *ag- "to drive, draw out or forth, move").

The physical sense of "state of being shaken or moving violently" is from 1580s; the meaning "state of being mentally agitated" is from 1722; that of "arousing and sustaining public attention" to some political or social cause is from 1828. Old English glossed Latin agitatio with unstilnis.

also from 1560s

Entries linking to agitation

agitprop(n.)

also agit-prop, "political propaganda in the arts or literature," 1938, from Russian agitatsiya "agitation" (from French agitation; see agitation) + propaganda (see propaganda), a word Russian got from German.

*ag-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to drive, draw out or forth, move."

It might form all or part of: act; action; active; actor; actual; actuary; actuate; agency; agenda; agent; agile; agitation; agony; ambagious; ambassador; ambiguous; anagogical; antagonize; apagoge; assay; Auriga; auto-da-fe; axiom; cache; castigate; coagulate; cogent; cogitation; counteract; demagogue; embassy; epact; essay; exact; exacta; examine; exigency; exiguous; fumigation; glucagon; hypnagogic; interact; intransigent; isagoge; litigate; litigation; mitigate; mystagogue; navigate; objurgate; pedagogue; plutogogue; prodigal; protagonist; purge; react; redact; retroactive; squat; strategy; synagogue; transact; transaction; variegate.

It might also be the source of: Greek agein "to lead, guide, drive, carry off," agon "assembly, contest in the games," agōgos "leader," axios "worth, worthy, weighing as much;" Sanskrit ajati "drives," ajirah "moving, active;" Latin actus "a doing; a driving, impulse, a setting in motion; a part in a play;" agere "to set in motion, drive, drive forward," hence "to do, perform," agilis "nimble, quick;" Old Norse aka "to drive;" Middle Irish ag "battle."

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    Trends of agitation

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    ferment
    late 14c. (intransitive), from Old French fermenter (13c.) and directly from Latin fermentare "to leaven, cause to rise or ferment," from fermentum "substance causing fermentation, leaven, drink made of fermented barley," perhaps contracted from *fervimentum, from root of fervere
    commotion
    late 14c., "violent movement or agitation, emotional disturbance," from Old French commocion "violent motion, agitation"...(12c., Modern French commotion) and directly from Latin commotionem (nominative commotio) "violent motion, agitation," noun...
    calm
    late 14c., of the sea, "windless, without motion or agitation;" of a wind, "light, gentle," perhaps via Old French calme...The figurative application to social or mental conditions, "free from agitation or passion," is from 1560s....
    controversy
    "disputation, debate, prolonged agitation of contrary opinions," late 14c., from Old French controversie "quarrel, disagreement...
    trouble
    c. 1200, "agitation of the mind, emotional turmoil," from Old French truble, torble "trouble, disturbance" (12c.), from trubler...
    trepidation
    c. 1600, from French trepidation (15c.) and directly from Latin trepidationem (nominative trepidatio) "agitation, alarm,...
    motion
    late 14c., mocioun, "process of moving; change of place, continuous variation of position;" also "suggestion, proposal or proposition formally made," from Old French mocion "movement, motion; change, alteration" (13c., Modern French motion) and directly from Latin motionem (nomin
    stir
    Middle English stiren, from Old English styrian, stirian "to move, be or become active or busy, pass into motion," also transitive, "to agitate with a rotating motion (a liquid or mixture by hand or with an instrument), move, change the location of; rouse, agitate, incite, urge;"
    halter
    Old English hælfter "rope for leading a horse," from Proto-Germanic *halftra- "that by which something is held" (source also of Old Saxon haliftra "halter," Old High German halftra, Middle Dutch halfter), from suffixed form of PIE *kelp- "to hold, grasp" (see helve). Also "hangma

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