Inspiration

The Inspirational History of Inspiration

Inspiration has a unique history in that its figurative sense appears to predate its literal one. It comes from the Latin inspiratus (the past participle of inspirare, “to breathe into, inspire”) and in English has had the meaning “the drawing of air into the lungs” since the middle of the 16th century. This breathing sense is still in everyday use among doctors, as is expiration (“the act or process of releasing air from the lungs”). However, before inspiration was used to refer to breath, it had a distinctly theological meaning in English, referring to a divine influence upon a person from a divine entity; this sense dates back to the early 14th century. The sense of inspiration often found today (“someone or something that inspires”) is considerably newer than either of these two senses, dating from the 19th century.