Middle English; earliest use found in The Seven Sages. From Anglo-Norman nigremancie, nigromancie and Middle French nigromancie, nygromancie, négromancie, alteration (with substitution of suffix -ie) of nigromance, probably after post-classical Latin nigromantia. Compare Old Occitan nigromansia, Spanish nigromancia, Italian negromanzia, †nigromanzia, Portuguese nigromancia.