'ascription' originates from Latin, specifically the verb 'ascribere' (from 'ad-' + 'scribere'), where 'ad-' meant 'to/toward' and 'scribere' meant 'to write'.

'ascription' developed from Late Latin/medieval Latin forms such as 'ascriptio' and entered English via Middle French or directly from Latin into Middle English as 'ascripcioun' (Middle English) before becoming modern English 'ascription'.

Initially connected with 'writing to' or 'assigning in writing' (from the Latin root meaning 'to write to/assign'), it evolved to the broader sense 'the act of attributing or assigning' used in modern English.