出典:Wiktionary
出典:『Wiktionary』 (2025/04/19 02:52 UTC 版)
From *opīnus (in inopīnus, necopīnus), of unclear origin.
The word is traditionally derived from Proto-Indo-European *op- (“to prefer, choose”), whence optō. However, Schrijver argues that the semantic link between "to choose" and "to believe" is tenuous, leaving the connection uncertain.
Vine notes that an alternative spelling of the word found in a third-century Praenestine inscription, opeinor, suggesting that the Proto-Italic form contained *-ei- and not *-ī-, rendering formal analysis even more difficult.