SOURCE 01supportshistorical dictionary
Legislation — Definition and First Known Use
Reports 1606.
First Known Use- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Merriam-Webster Editors
- YEAR
- 2026
- PUBLISHER
- Merriam-Webster
PERMANENT DISPUTE RECORD
ALL DISPUTES ↗CLAIM / COUNTERCLAIM / LIMITRECORD 143
DISPUTE
RECORD.
One scholarly question. Every attached source. The present editorial state, without pretending the last word has been written.
openprobable
When does the reviewed English record for legislation begin?
The references disagree. Merriam-Webster reports 1606; Etymonline gives the 1650s, while CNRTL cites NED for before 1655. The earliest reviewed year remains source-reported rather than object-verified.
WORD UNDER REVIEWDISPUTE 143
legislation
/ˌlɛdʒɪˈsleɪʃən/ · noun
The making of laws or laws collectively; from French and Late Latin legislatio, a law-proposing or law-bearing formation.
01
DIRECT CLAIM EVIDENCE
3 SOURCES WITH A STANCE
A citation is not a vote. Each record says whether the work supports, challenges, contradicts, or contextualizes the position—and identifies the exact locus used.
SOURCE 02challengeshistorical dictionary
Legislation — Origin and history
Reports the 1650s.
Headword chronology- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Douglas Harper
- YEAR
- 2026
- PUBLISHER
- Online Etymology Dictionary
SOURCE 03contexthistorical dictionary
CNRTL / TLFi: législation — Étymologie et histoire
Reports English legislation before 1655.
English chronology from NED- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Centre national de ressources textuelles et lexicales Editors
- YEAR
- Not recorded
- PUBLISHER
- CNRTL / ATILF
02 / EDITORIAL STATE
THE QUESTION REMAINS OPEN.
- CONFIDENCE
- probable
- STATUS
- open
- LEGACY SOURCE SUMMARY
- Three current historical references expose a real lexicographic chronology conflict.
The reviewed evidence does not yet warrant collapsing the competing or incomplete analyses into one secure answer.