c. 1400, dislocacioun, "displacement of parts," originally of bones of the limbs, from Old French dislocacion (14c.), or directly from Medieval Latin dislocationem (nominative dislocatio), noun of action from past participle stem of dislocare "put out of place," from Latin dis- "away" (see dis-) + locare "to place," from locus "a place," which is of uncertain origin. General sense is from c. 1600.