time immemorial

American  

noun

1. Also called time out of mind. time in the distant past beyond memory or record.

   Those carvings have been there from time immemorial.

2. Law. time beyond legal memory, fixed by statute in England as prior to the beginning of the reign of Richard I (1189).

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time immemorial British  

noun

1. the distant past beyond memory or record

2. law time beyond legal memory, fixed by English statute as before the reign of Richard I (1189)

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time immemorial Idioms  

1. Also, time out of mind. Long ago, beyond memory or recall, as in These ruins have stood here since time immemorial, or His office has been on Madison Avenue for time out of mind. The first expression comes from English law, where it signifies “beyond legal memory,” specifically before the reign of Richard I (1189–1199), fixed as the legal limit for bringing certain kinds of lawsuit. By about 1600 it was broadened to its present sense of “a very long time ago.” The variant, first recorded in 1432, uses mind in the sense of “memory” or “recall.”

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Etymology

Origin of time immemorial

First recorded in 1595–1605

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

time immemorial

One would think the viruses and bacteria that have tormented humanity since time immemorial would never find a friend in the species — human beings — they so routinely sicken and kill.

From Salon ● Feb. 5, 2025

“We follow the Santa Ana river, so this goes back to time immemorial that we’ve been aware of this sacred ceremonial space.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2024

Researchers compared the genomes of the modern and historic individuals and found they belong to a unified lineage, supporting Blackfoot oral traditions that attest to their people’s presence here since time immemorial.

From Science Magazine ● Apr. 3, 2024

This park, and all of Nunavut, is Inuit Nunangat -- Inuit homeland in Canada -- and the park protects sites and biodiversity stewarded by Inuit since time immemorial.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 12, 2024

Everywhere he looked, he saw a world made of stories, the long ago, time immemorial stories, as old Grandma called them.

From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko