origin
 or·i·gin (ôrʹə-jĭn, ŏrʹ-)n.
1. The point at which something comes into existence or from which it derives or is derived.
2. Ancestry: “We cannot escape our origins, however hard we try” (James Baldwin).
3. The fact of originating; rise or derivation:
The rumor had its origin in an impulsive remark.
4. Anatomy. The point of attachment of a muscle that remains relatively fixed during contraction.
5. Mathematics. The point of intersection of coordinate axes, as in the Cartesian coordinate system. [Middle English origine, ancestry, from Latin orīgō, orīgin-, from orīrī, to arise, be born. See er-1 in Indo-European Roots.]
Synonyms: origin, inception, source, root
1 These nouns signify the point at which something originates. Origin is the point at which something comes into existence: The origins of some words are unknown. When origin refers to people, it means parentage or ancestry: “He came... of mixed French and Scottish origin” (Charlotte Brontë). Inception is the beginning, as of an action or process: The researcher was involved in the project from its inception. Source signifies the point at which something springs into being or from which it derives or is obtained: “The mysterious... is the source of all true art and science” (Albert Einstein). Root often denotes what is considered the fundamental cause of or basic reason for something: “Lack of money is the root of all evil” (George Bernard Shaw).
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