The term larceny was adopted in 1475 from the Anglo-Norman word larcen, with the origin of the suffix -y remaining a point of contention among linguists. It may have been added as a noun-forming suffix, similar to words like sympathy or victory, or it could have been influenced by other crime-related terms such as burglary and felony. Regardless, larcen can be traced back to Old French larcin and Latin latrocinium, both of which meant “robbery”. Latrocinium is a second-declension noun derived from the third-declension word latro, signifying “mercenary” or “highwayman”. This word, in turn, originates from Ancient Greek latron, meaning “pay” or “hire” (although the context of hiring mercenaries is ironic given the modern definition of larceny). Ultimately, latron can be traced back to Proto-Indo-European leht, which denotes “to grant” or “possess”.
