The word proscription derives from the Latin prōscriptiōn, a combination of the prefix prō-, to put forward, and the verb scrībere, to write. A proscription in ancient Rome was any written document posted in the forum, such as the announcement of a public sale. In Shakespeare’s day, the word proscription was used to refer to one specific type of document posted in the public square: lists of people deemed by the government to be enemies of the state. People on the list could be legally murdered by anyone and their killers would be given a financial reward.