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Origin and history of client

client(n.)

late 14c., "one who lives under the patronage of another," from Anglo-French clyent (c. 1300), from Latin clientem (nominative cliens) "follower, retainer" (related to clinare "to incline, bend"), from PIE *klient-, a suffixed (active participle) form of root *klei- "to lean." The notion apparently is "one who leans on another for protection." In ancient Rome, a plebeian under the guardianship and protection of a patrician (who was called patronus in this relationship; see patron).

The meaning "a lawyer's customer" is attested from c. 1400, and by c. 1600 the word was extended to any customer who puts a particular interest in the care and management of another. Related: Cliency.

The relation of client and patron between a plebeian and a patrician, although at first strictly voluntary, was hereditary, the former bearing the family name of the latter, and performing various services for him and his family both in peace and war, in return for advice and support in respect to private rights and interests. Foreigners in Rome, and even allied or subject states and cities, were often clients of Roman patricians selected by them as patrons. The number of a patrician's clients, as of a baron's vassals in the middle ages, was a gage his greatness. [Century Dictionary]

also from late 14c.

Entries linking to client

patron(n.)

c. 1300, patroun, "a lord-master, one who protects, supports, or encourages," also "one who has the right of presenting a clergyman to a preferment," from Old French patron "patron, protector, patron saint" (12c.) and directly from Medieval Latin patronus "patron saint, bestower of a benefice; lord, master; model, pattern, example," from Latin patronus "defender, protector; former master (of a freed slave); advocate," from pater (genitive patris) "father" (see father (n.)). A doublet of pattern (n.); also compare patroon.

From late 14c. as "founder of a religious order," also "a patron saint." The meaning "one who advances and encourages the cause or work" of an artist, institution, etc., usually by means of the person's wealth and power, is suggested from late 14c., clearly in this sense by c. 1600; "commonly a wretch who supports with insolence, and is paid with flattery" [Johnson]. The commercial sense of "regular customer" is recorded from c. 1600. Patron saint "saint regarded as a special protector of a person, place, profession, etc." (by 1717) originally was simply patron (late 14c.).

clientele(n.)

1560s, "body of professed adherents, clients collectively under the patronage of someone," from French clientèle (16c.), from Latin clientela "relationship between dependent and patron; body of clients," from clientem (nominative cliens, "follower, retainer;" see client).

The word is said in OED to apparently have become obsolete after 17c., and the main modern meaning "customers, those who regularly patronize a business or professional" is from 1857, perhaps a reborrowing from French (it was used in English in italics as a foreign word from 1836).

Clientage is attested from 1630s as "a body of clients;" clientship from 1640s as "condition of being a client."

*klei-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to lean."

It might form all or part of: acclivity; anticline; clemency; client; climate; climax; cline; clinic; clinical; clino-; clitellum; clitoris; decline; declivity; enclitic; heteroclite; incline; ladder; lean (v.); lid; low (n.2) "small hill, eminence;" matroclinous; patroclinous; polyclinic; proclitic; proclivity; recline; synclinal; thermocline.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit srayati "leans," sritah "leaning;" Old Persian cay "to lean;" Lithuanian šlyti "to slope," šlieti "to lean;" Latin clinare "to lean, bend," clivus "declivity," inclinare "cause to bend," declinare "bend down, turn aside;" Greek klinein "to cause to slope, slant, incline;" Old Irish cloin "crooked, wrong;" Middle Irish cle, Welsh cledd "left," literally "slanting").