dēpositiō

Latin dēpositiō comes from dēpōnere, 'to put down,' from dē- (down) + pōnere (to place). The word has carried two meanings since late Latin: the act of putting something down (including removing a ruler from power) and the act of giving testimony (placing your words on the record). Both meanings arrived in English by the 1400s and have coexisted ever since.

The deposition of Richard II of England in 1399 was one of the most consequential in medieval history. Henry Bolingbroke forced Richard to abdicate — to put down his crown — and took the throne as Henry IV. Shakespeare dramatized it in Richard II around 1595, and the deposition scene was considered so politically dangerous that it was censored from early printed editions. Elizabeth I, facing questions about her own succession, reportedly said, 'I am Richard II. Know ye not that?'

The legal meaning developed in parallel. A deposition in law is testimony given under oath, typically outside of court, and recorded for later use. The witness 'deposits' their account — places it on the record, where it becomes fixed. In American civil procedure, depositions are a standard part of discovery. The witness cannot easily retract what has been deposed.

The geological meaning followed logically. Sediment deposited by water or wind is matter that has been put down — placed in layers over time. The Latin verb does the same work in every context: something is moved from a higher position to a lower one. A king is moved from throne to ground. Words are moved from speech to record. Silt is moved from water to riverbed.