Why are deceased people sometimes referred to as "late?"

Linus_337

Hello, Norwich! I found the following couple of (reasonably unsatisfactory) references which explain the etiquette of when to use "late" and from when the first reference to its usage dates, but not the actual why: We called Ted Nesbitt, a librarian at West Virginia state college for your answer and he says when late is used in reference to a person, it means, that was alive not long ago, but is not now; recently deceased. It's first written usage in the English language was in Caxton's Eneydos in 1490: "Her swete and late amyable husbonde". So late in this sense means in the recent past, if her husband had died twenty years before, he would be dead or deceased, but not certainly late. http://www.nbc4.com/answerstoaskliz2002/1225935/detail.html http://www.wordwizard.com/clubhouse/founddiscuss.asp?Num=4440 Sep 19 03, 6:01 PM

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