1830, from Fr. sans "without" (from O.Fr., from V.L. *sene, from L. sine, from si ne "if not," + adverbial genitive) + Eng. serif, from earlier ceref, perhaps from Du. schreef "a line, a stroke," from schrijven "to write," from L. scribere. Short form sans recorded from 1927.
[sanz] 
