From Latin 'instare' (to stand upon) — originally 'urgent,' then shifted to 'a point in time' and 'immediate.'
A very short period of time; happening or produced immediately.
From Latin instantem (nominative instans), present participle of instāre (to stand upon, to be present, to press upon), from in- (upon) + stāre (to stand). The PIE root is *steh₂- (to stand), one of the most ancient and widely distributed roots in Indo-European, present in Sanskrit sthā-, Greek histēmi, Old English standan, Gothic standan, Lithuanian stóti, and Old Church Slavonic stati. The original Latin sense was pressing, urgent — something standing upon you demanding
When medieval letters began 'in the instant month' they meant 'in the present month' — because 'instant' originally meant 'pressing, at hand, present.' The abbreviation 'inst.' (as in 'the 5th inst.') survived in business correspondence well into the twentieth century. The shift from 'present' to 'immediate' to 'a fleeting moment' inverted the word's temporal