'provenance' originates from French, specifically the word 'provenance', which ultimately comes from Latin 'provenire', where 'pro-' meant 'forth/forward' and 'venire' meant 'to come'.

'provenance' passed into English via Old French/Middle English forms (e.g. Old French 'provenance', Middle English spelled sometimes 'provenaunce') and eventually became the modern English word 'provenance'.

Initially it referred to the action or process of 'coming forth' or 'originating' (in a general sense); over time it narrowed to mean the origin or recorded history (especially of objects) — the source and chain of custody.