690: Profession Oct 28, 2016

If someone were to make a confession, that person would have confessed; if there is a recession, then say, the economy, would recess; but if someone had a profession, what does that person profess? This is not some fluke of English: a few centuries ago 'profession' would have made a lot more sense. Back when the word was used in Middle English, a professional could only be a clergyman, in that 'profession' denoted the oath that one would take to enter a religious order. At the time, these professions would be, quite literally, professed, as not only was this an oath, but also may have been fairly public. Later on, people would be thought of professing that which the were skilled at doing, thus relating to jobs.